Emerge to Reveal
by Tiger Celeste
Summary: When a dream about Serena abandoning the senshi to leave with Beryl's generals is revealed, it's decided that Serena should be questioned. Yet that simple action turns into something dire as secrets about the Silver Millennium are exposed. First Season DS
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

Note: I just want to say that this is my first fanfic story. I would greatly appreciate reviews and constructive criticism. Please NO flames. Despite popular belief there is a difference between the two and flames can be very hurtful things. Just thought I should point that out.

This story is an AU in that it does not follow the original story line. You'll notice that as soon as it gets into a few chapters, or maybe even before. In my story all the scouts have been found and are working together, but only Jadeite and Nephrite are been defeated; the other two generals have yet to make an appearance. Darien has also always been aware that he is Tuxedo Mask, there never was a time when he was unaware that he was fighting along side Sailor Moon. However, the Senshi don't know who he is and he doesn't know who they are in civilian forms.

Additionally everyone is still looking for the princess but the Senshi don't know that Tuxedo is looking for her too. Also, the Senshi's attacks from the anime and manga most likely won't be in this story. Well, that's somewhat true, I didn't want to keep the names of the original attacks but some of the attacks I used are the same, just different. That's confusing, sorry about that. You'll understand when you read later on.

In addition, I'd like to warn you that the first two chapters or so are more background information than anything. I wanted to make sure all the information was there about what was going on so you can have a full understanding of what was happening. Oh, one more thing, Artemis never appeared with Minako/Venus. No one knows anything about his existence, let alone current whereabouts.

Umm… I think that's all I have to say about what's different about the story. If I think of anything else I'll be sure to add a note at the beginning of the chapter. I'm really sorry for such a long note too, I just wanted to make sure there was no confusion. Well, here's the story. I hope you like it. Please comment on it!

_Third Revision Post Date: 5/2/09 Small word error revisions; changed several "Sailor Moon"s to "she"s._

_Second Revision Post Date: 9/13/08 Small word-choice revisions. Added a summary of events at the end._

_Revision Post Date:4/11/08 Revised from first person to third person point of view and fixed minor errors._

_Original Date: 1/21/07_

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* * *

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'_Another night, another fight.' _A pretty blonde teenage-girl thought to herself as she raced toward the park in answer to her friend --Ami's-- call over the communicator about an other dimensional monster, called youmas by their beckoners and now her and her friends, that was running around.

'_I don't think I'll ever understand why the youmas come out so late at night and look for energy to steal. I mean, who was running around in the middle of the night for the Dark Kingdom to steal energy from in the first place?' _She thought to herself with a roll of her eyes as she stopped in the middle of the empty street and threw one of her hands up into the air.

"_**Moon Prism Power!"**_

The blonde sighed as the now familiar dazzling pink and red ribbons and bows burst from the broach she held before changing her into her Senshi form. As the final bow melted into her uniform, the wind picked up and danced around her, making her _'odangoes' _dance in the air also.

The Champion of Love and Justice, Sailor Moon, stood in the place where Serena Tsukino once stood. The moonlight gleamed off the red jewels on her odangoes, which sat on either side of her head, and her moon shaped earrings, making them glow eerily in the night. Without a second thought to her appearance the now-outfitted girl once again raced toward the youma in the park and her awaiting friends.

* * *

As the teenager raced toward her friends, she couldn't stop her mind from wandering back to when all of this began. It had almost been eight months since she had first accepted her destiny as Sailor Moon. Her talking cat, no matter how lunatic that sounds and ironically enough named Luna, was the one who first told her of her destiny. The two had first crossed paths when she saved Luna from a group of kids that were bullying her. Curiosity piped in the cat and she began to follow her before determining her to be a Senshi, a warrior sworn to protect the universe. As Serena soon learned though, there was so much more to the duty.

Luna told her that she was once, about ten thousand years ago, one of the protectors and defenders of the Moon Kingdom and the rest of the universe. Primarily however, she was one of the bodyguards of the would-have-been ruler of the universe and all its inhabitants-- Princess Serenity of the Moon Kingdom. The princess would have ruled over all the universe because the inhabitants of the planets (with the exception of Earth) were under the Moon Kingdom's rule and willingly allowed the royal family of the Moon to rule and guide them in an alliance and monarchy known as the Silver Alliance. Every planet had their own royal family to rule over them but the Moon monarchs had the final say in everything.

Sailor Moon and the rest of the Sailor Senshi, as Luna told Serena they were known and would now be known as, loved their princess and were honored to protect and serve her. They lived their lives peacefully on the Moon and home planets and were respected and revered by many. Unfortunately, all of that was destroyed when an evil sorceress from Earth became jealous of the Moon and the Lunarian royal family's power and the long life spans of those on the Moon and other planets. The inhabitants of Earth, the sorceress included, were the only ones in the entire universe that lived a short eighty years or so. It was incredibly rare, and considered good fortune, to live past such an age.

The Terran royal family, Luna claimed, were the exception to that rule because they were able to live much longer --some for centuries at a time. However, since the sorceress was extremely loyal to her royal family, she refused to harm any of them to gain the secrets of their long lifespans. Instead she turned to the closest non-Terrans --the Moon inhabitants-- to gain the secrets of immortality and, as an added bonus, to gain the Silver Imperial Crystal. Besides being the source of all the Moon and the Lunarian royal family's power, the Silver Imperial Crystal was the strong power in the _universe_; so strong it could destroy whole planets if the wielder chose to do so.

Halfway through her tale, Luna admitted that she didn't quite remember _everything _since it had happened so long ago and that, while she was only put in a deep sleep and not reincarnated like the Senshi, the age of time hadn't been so great to her memories and she could only remember a few things. However, she had been quick to assure Serena, the things she _did _remember were vital to their mission and no doubt accurate. Some of those things she couldn't recall were the events that led up to the downfall of the Moon Kingdom and the entire Silver Alliance but she _could _recall the last hours of the Moon Kingdom.

At some type of celebration on the Moon, the evil Earth Sorceress appeared with an army of youma while everyone was preoccupied with the festivities and managed to kill all the Senshi --who were protecting the royal family-- before finally killing the royal family themselves. The dying Queen of the Moon, with the last of her strength, used the Silver Imperial Crystal to grant her wish of reincarnating everyone --the princess included-- on Earth to live a new, peaceful life free of responsibility. Before all of her strength and powerful magic drained out of her, Luna proudly recalled as she had yet to be sent into sleep, the Queen sealed the evil sorceress and her army away for the rest of eternity.

Of course, that was not how things turned out, no matter how much the Queen wished it to be so. Somehow the sorceress managed to break free of her seal and, with the help of her Dark Kingdom generals, have unleashed her youma upon the Earth for her revenge. Before she was put into her sleep, Luna was ordered that, if the sorceress ever managed to escape, she had to find and awaken all the Sailor Senshi. With their help, she had to then find the reincarnated Princess Serenity and destroy the sorceress once and for all. Then the princess was to decide the fate of the senshi and if she decided to wield her mother's mantle once more.

'_Of course, at that time, I didn't believe any of what Luna had said. I mean an evil sorceress planning to seek her revenge with late night movie monsters?' _Sailor Moon thought to herself with a grin, _'It would still seem hard to believe if I didn't have to fight the youmas all the time.' _

However, that same night Luna informed Serena of her destiny was when her beliefs changed. As she was walking home past the park, she heard terrified screams of what sounded like a group of little girls. Rushing toward the sounds, thinking it was a bully terrorizing the girls, she came upon a ugly green monster that was practically oozing slime. She could still remember the terror she felt when she noticed that in its clutches was a young girl that looked only nine or ten and was glowing a sickening blue color while noticeably becoming weaker and limp by the second. Looking around, she'd instantly noticed three other girls running for their lives towards the exit of the park and for that she had been thankful. After all, it was easier to attempt to save one girl opposed to four. _'And I knew that despite how scared I felt and how much I wanted to scream my own head off and run with the other girls, my mind flashed back to the story Luna told and before I knew it, I felt an urgent need to help the girl. Something inside me had wanted to come out and help and that's what I ended up doing.'_

No matter where she'd looked, nothing was with her that could be used as a weapon, so she had ended up chucking large rocks that had been lying nearby at the monster with the hope it would disregard the girl and choose to chase after her instead. She had been lucky. The monster decided she was too much of an annoyance --_'no doubt hated what little bravery I had too'-_ and had dropped the girl before giving chase. She'd ran around in sheer panic for nearly ten minutes before Luna had finally called out to her. The black cat did a back-flip, _--'which I would have laughed at if I hadn't been so terrified and relieved to see her'--_ causing a pink and gold broach to come sailing toward the girl. When she grabbed the broach, Serena didn't take time consider the strangely conflicting emotions that ran through her once she made contact with the object.

Nonetheless she could still remembered the sense of relief, power, and _rightness_ but at the same time the feeling that it was so very wrong to be holding it and that she wasn't supposed to transform. When Luna had yelled out _**"Now, Serena! Do it before it comes any closer! Say 'Moon Prism Power' while holding the broach!"**_ once again the emotions came crashing into her, this time more strongly and she had been hard pressed to not drop the broach where she stood. Instead, her mind had flashed back to the little girl she had found and what others the monster might attack if she did nothing. In the end, she used all of her willpower to ignore the tide wave of emotions that crashed into her in favor of listening to Luna's advise. As soon as the phrase left her mouth, intense power that she would never forget charged through her veins.

Stunning pink and red ribbons flew out of the broach and incased her small body before forming a white body suit, a blue skirt, a red bow on her chest and lower back, red round jewels came to cover her odangoes on the top of my head, moon shaped dangling earrings appeared, and a pair of knee high red boots enclosed her feet. The Champion of Love and Justice, Sailor Moon, first made her appearance on that night.

Of course, as soon as she'd completely transformed and got her bearings back, the reality of the situation came crashing down into her. She didn't know what she was doing and had just transformed into a being that once existed ten thousand years ago according to Luna's narrating. She had absolutely no idea as to how to protect herself and, more importantly, how to destroy the monster. _'Worst of all thought was the fact that Luna had completely disappeared after my transformation. Leaving a newly formed Senshi completely on her own wasn't the smartest thing to do.'_

With no way to protect herself, the new Senshi had spent the next twenty minutes dodging slime balls --_acid_ slime-- that the youma could conveniently throw. Luna had yet to make her appearance, leaving the girl in terrified and frustrated tears, which caused her to fall down everywhere in her panic at trying to protect herself. Serena would never forget the pain that hit her when she had missed a step in her running and fallen down only for the youma to throw three acid slime balls into her exposed back. They had burned painfully, straight through her uniform bodice, leaving all sorts of blisters and scorch marks in their wake.

In pain and desperation from the unwelcome attack, the blonde Senshi had screamed out with all her might, feeling a desperate need to call out to someone, even though she didn't know who. _'ENDYMION! HELP ME, PLEASE!!!' _

She'd ended up calling out to a person she had never heard of before in her life, but what had always confused her the most was that it was a telepathic call instead of the vocal one she had been expecting to release. Nonetheless, there had never been enough words to express the gratitude she had felt when her call was answered by a curiously mental tug, not to mention the sense of comfort and peace that she so desperately needed that came with the answer. That comfort and peace lasted the entire youma fight, at least until the youma became tired of playing around with her and had backhanded her across the face before beginning to choke the life out of her. The next thing she knew, she had been miraculously swept out of the youma's chokehold and lifted up by a man in velvet and silk that smelled strongly of roses.

Looking over the man's shoulder, Sailor Moon got her look at the death of her first youma encounter. A cane, or more specifically, the sharp sword that came out of one end of it, was sticking out of the youma's chest where black fluid oozed welled up to the surface of the wound in a semblance of blood. A single red rose, complete with dangerous thorns, also stuck out of the youma which the Senshi later learned was what had immobilized it in those final seconds. The man that had saved her jumped into a tree a good distance away and they both watched as any signs of the youma disappeared into a pile of dust that slowly blew away into the night.

'_That night both Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask had been born into this world to fight evil.' _The girl thought with a bittersweet smile, _'Neither of us knew what to make of our new destinies but in an unspoken agreement, we decided that if we were together, we would protect one another and could overcome anything the Dark Kingdom threw our way. And that's exactly how it has been between us ever since.'_

"Thank you for saving me." Sailor Moon had uttered softly as she looked into her savior's face. She thought she had caught a glimpse of blue eyes but before she could know for sure, the mask once again obscured anything from her peering view. That mask has always kept her and the rest of the Senshi from knowing the true identity of her silent knight-in-shining-armor but she, in the very least, holds a deep respect for his privacy and secrets, just as he does their own.

His white silk glove had come to rest on the new senshi's cheek for the briefest of seconds, --_'To this day I wonder if it was just wishful thinking that that had happened'--_ before he gave a slight nod of his head and answered the blonde. "Remember Sailor Moon, I will always be there when you need me most. You will always have me to come to." He had said confidently, as if he knew the deep fears in her heart that even she hadn't been aware of at the time, "You are destined for great things and I know that you can conquer any obstacle that comes your way. Just remember to always believe in yourself first and foremost."

With that being said and one last look at the girl, Tuxedo Mask had jumped into the night with a flurry of black silk and red velvet from his cape. Glancing down to where he had been standing, a single red thorn-less rose was lying innocently on the ground. As Sailor Moon looked after him, she picked up the rose and held it close, wondering where the rose came from and why it seemed so important to her.

'_I still feel silly for thinking that.' _The blonde thought with a smile, _'I mean I had just met the guy, I shouldn't have been thinking anything like that. Especially after I was almost killed. Of course that didn't stop me from keeping that rose. To this day it still sits on my desk looking as if I had just picked it from a bush that very morning. It's never wilted or even faded in all this time and I can't help but hope it never does. That it's magic never fades. It reminds me there was still hope that night, even though everything changed for me. That night I accepted my destiny as the Champion of Love and Justice and even though I become tired of it and sometimes wish to abandon it with everything in my very being, I cannot help but remember that it is __**my **__destiny to keep fighting and protecting. The destiny to protect everyone out there that cannot protect themselves. And that's why I keep continuing on.'_

Luna appeared shortly after Serena had jumped down from the tree and de-transformed after watching Tuxedo Mask's departure in silence for a few minutes. "Well done, Serena." She had praised with a hint of pride etching her voice, "I knew that you were a Sailor Senshi. You had a rough start but you managed to pull through and destroy the youma all by yourself."

'_And that's when I knew she had never watched the fight.' _Sailor Moon thought with a frown. _'Otherwise she would have known about Tuxedo Mask right away.'_

Luna had walked away after her praising, not allowing Serena the chance to explain what really happened; that she hadn't been the one to kill the youma and that instead had cowered in fear and was almost killed. Secretly though, she couldn't help but feel happy and relieved her new guardian was proud of her and never bothered to correct the black feline. It gave the senshi a small bit of courage, enabling her to believe in herself, that she would be able to carry out her destiny.

During their conversation neither of them ever noticed the golden sparks that danced across Serena's back, slowly healing her burn marks before disappearing from sight. They would never know that the sparks had only appeared when Tuxedo Mask had touched the soldier's back while taking her to safety.

* * *

As said though, that was almost eight months ago. A lot can change in such a long period of time and it had. Over the entire eight months, the other Sailor Senshi were found and, in one case, came to the others. In the end, a team of young woman formed the Sailor Senshi circle.

The first Senshi to appear was a new transfer student from Germany at Serena's school, Ami Mizuno. Ami was revealed to be Sailor Mercury, the Sailor of Ice and Intelligence. Because she appeared in only a short month after Serena first transformed, the two quickly became close friends and learned to help and even rely on each other in those early months.

Quickly after she became Sailor Mercury, it was learned that she was the Senshi of Ice because of the attacks she can form. Most of her attacks were defensive, like her _'Veiling Bubbles' _that becomes a mist to hide in and her '_Arctic Dome' _that is a small shield. She does, however, have a few offensive attacks such as her _'Glacier Point Frost' _that are sharp ice shards she can throw and her _'Sub-Zero Arrows' _which are freezing arrows launched from her frozen bow. Both attacks can temporarily paralyze the youmas, much like Tuxedo Mask's roses do.

Unfortunately for everyone, it was also quickly discovered that Mercury can only form the majority of her attacks at their strongest levels when she is near a source of water. That didn't deter either her or Serena in those early months, however, because she simply became more of a strategist than a fighter. It is also appropriate to be the strategist because Mercury is also the Senshi of Intelligence, making her the best strategist possible for the Senshi. With her Mercury Mini-Computer she is able to find the youmas' weakest point so it can be destroyed much faster. Her own intelligence also comes in handy when the need comes; she is able to determine tons of details and facts by just analyzing the situation within a few minutes. _'I'm still amazed how smart Ames is. I think I always will be.'_ Sailor Moon thought with a fond smile for the blue-haired girl.

The next scout to appear was Rei Hino, the Shinto priestess of the Hikawa Jinja that her and her grandfather manage. She goes to a private Catholic school named _'T*A Private Girls School' _on the other side of town so Serena and Ami only learned of her when there was a youma attack at her temple involving young children and women going missing on buses. At the ensuing youma battle with the Dark Kingdom general Jadeite, she turned out to be Sailor Mars --the Senshi of Fire and Spirit.

Rei appeared four and a half months after Serena first transformed and they are still going through a rocky phase. '_Which I cannot help but think is related to her element-- fire After all, Rei's explosive temper usually leaves me running from a youma fight, the arcade where we hangout, or the temple- the place of our Senshi meetings- in tears most days.' _Both girls still have their moments when they pal around and seem to be great friends though, no matter that the bouts of friendship lasts only between a few minutes to a few days.

Rei became the Senshi of Fire and Spirit because of her ability to manipulate fire and her physic senses, surprisingly enough even before becoming a Senshi. After her first youma fight, she told the others that she had always been able to see visions in fire and has been in tuned with it since before she could remember. She can meditate in front of the Sacred Fire at her temple for hours at a time, discovering the answers to her questions. Ever since she became Sailor Mars though, Rei has been able to actually manipulate fire into forming _'Fierce Inferno Arrows'_, dangerous fire arrows that she launches from a flaming bow, and '_Blazing Fireballs of Fury'_,a powerful series of fireballs that will attack an enemy,and her physic senses have increased significantly. While she was only able to sense negative energy before, she was never able to determine where it came from. Now she is able to get an almost exact location of where the negative energy comes from and follow up on it. She has also said her visions and ofuda scrolls, pieces of holy paper with incantations she can throw at youmas to paralyze them, have become much stronger too.

The next scout to turn up was Sailor Jupiter. In civilian form the Senshi of Lightning/Storms and Protection is Makoto Kino. Makoto showed up one day at Serena and Ami's school, coming from a school only a few miles away, six months after Serena first became a Senshi. While every Senshi would agree that Makoto is an amazing person that will stand up for anyone --_'and also makes some of the best food ever. Yum!'_-- she has the habit of getting into fights and, while it is usually defending someone who is too small to do so for themselves, schools refuse to tolerate fights of any kind. Which is exactly why she was expelled from her old school: she was defending a fifth grader from a tenth grade bully. Nonetheless, since Makoto has a tendency to defend others it only made that much more sense when she was branded a Senshi, especially the Senshi of Protection.

As Sailor Jupiter, Makoto truly is the scout of lightning and storms. Almost all of her attacks summon lightning through an antenna that appears out of her tiara, specifically out of the emerald jewel in the tiara. Two of her lighting attacks she can summon are _'Divine Lightning Air Strike' _which is lightning that rains down on the enemy and she also has _'Echoing Thunder Thorns' _which are dangerous airwaves charged with lightning and energy that she hurtles at the enemy. Another one of her attacks is _'Petal Storm Fury'_,whichis an attack that summons any type of flower petals to create a powerful electricity-charged whirlwind that impacts the enemy, causing it to get electrified and it can also temporarily blind the enemy.

'_I'd never want to get on her bad side in a lightning storm. There's no telling what she might do, even on accident.'_ Sailor Moon thought with a wry grin.

The last, and final if Luna is right, Senshi to appear came to the rest of the team. Sailor Venus, the Senshi of Love/Beauty and Light was a savior to the rest of the Senshi. While they had all been badly beaten by two youma and the Dark Kingdom general Nephrite, Venus had appeared and single handily defeated both youma and fatally wounded Nephrite. After she managed to free the other Senshi and Tuxedo Mask from the shrinking dome they were trapped in, Sailor Moon had taken out the general once and for all.

Immediately after the fight she disappeared with a promise to return. The next day after school when the Senshi had been discussing the mysterious Venus, a woman came up to their usual table at the Crown Arcade. Without preamble she had quietly introduced herself as Minako Aino, a new transfer student enrolled at Tokyo University from England. Then she went on to say she was also Sailor Venus and the former Sailor V, the Senshi of England that had fought youma, criminals, and thieves alike while being a model turned international icon.

That was only two short weeks ago and none of the other Senshi had found much else about Minako or Sailor Venus. While she appeared at every battle and helped, she would quickly disappear from sight and she also only spent time with the Senshi as a civilian once or twice. _'She really is a mysterious woman. We don't even know how old she is or why she was Sailor V in the first place. One thing I would especially like to know is how she received her powers when the rest of us only got our own powers when Luna told us who we are and gave them to us.' _The odangoed-girl thought to herself curiously, '_It's a big mystery and I'm curious as to why none of the other Senshi, or even Luna!, have asked her either.'_

Minako is the scout of Love/Beauty and Light because all her attacks have a love or beauty theme to them and are in a light or energy form. Her attack _'Explosive Hearts On Fire' _are little energy formed hearts that are similar to bombs in that they explode on contact when she throws them at enemies. Another of her powerful attacks involve the heart-linked chain which she carries around her waist. The chain is just what it is --a chain-- but in the fight right after Nephrite died, it turned into a very powerful whip that is encircled with the same energy that makes the explosive hearts. When Venus threw the whip and yelled _"Stunning Whip of Wrath!" _the chain wrapped around the youma. Then a powerful electric shock surged from it into the youma, instantly killing it.

Unexpectedly at that fight, the rest of the Senshi learned that when Venus uses that particular attack it uses so much of her energy that she almost collapses afterwards. Which is exactly why she hasn't bothered to use that attack again; she simply uses the chain as a chain to grab a hold of the enemy now and she even used it once to pull Mercury out of the way of an attack. _'Even if Venus is so suspicious, it really is nice to have all of the Senshi together and working, at least for the most part, together too.'_

With all the other Senshi appearing and all the time that has passed, Serena could consider only one thing to remain a constant: Tuxedo Mask's presence. Unfailing, he has been to every single youma fight that Sailor Moon has been to. _'And it doesn't matter if he appears and helps or not, I can always sense his presence --his very soul you can almost say-- at every battle so I know he's always there watching and waiting for when he's needed.'_

Within that first month of lonely battles, it was easy for her to determine that Tuxedo Mask is a man of his word. He never once failed to appear when she needed him the most or when a youma had been too strong and overpowered her. He easily appeared and saved her in the nick of time before helping her defeat the monsters. Because of that, she readily placed her faith in his promises -all said in his own little ways- that he would always be there for her and that she could count on him. _'After all, he's never given me a reason __**not **__to believe him in all this time.'_

Even if he hardly ever stays late after a battle (if he does, it usually is to see if she was all right after a close call) there are still times when she will talk to him and he will give his silent approval and support. _'I can never tell him how grateful I am for that. That and his advice in believing in myself first and foremost. I know his encouragement will always be with me when I think of that and of the rose he left me during out first meeting. And lets not forget,'_ She admitted to herself with a guilty wince, _'that Tuxedo Mask is practically the main thing that keeping me going lately. Well, besides Darien, but that's a whole different story.'_

She knew that if it wasn't for Tuxedo Mask, she probably would have given up a long time ago and simply handed her broach and yielded her powers back to Luna. She knew it and she also knew that he knew it as well. There was no doubt in her mind that he could easily sense her hesitation when she's called to a youma battle or even when she dodges out of the way when she's had a horrible day and just wants to give up. She knew that as easily as she knew that even him, her big, strong, and brave protector feels the exact same way once in a while. _'And I also know that he is furious with himself, and me, when we feel that way. It frustrates him that we can't merely give up and quit fighting. Of course never to give up and die but to not fight anymore and finally have _**normal **_lives. But we both know that we _**can't **_give up. We have to keep going. The world is counting on us and we are counting on each other.'_

* * *

The blonde Senshi groaned as she realized she had almost completely slowed down to a stop during her musings. _'Please let me make it on time. Please, please.'_ She chanted to herself as she once again picked up her speed into a full out run.

She knew that she won't be able to deal with anything tonight if she arrived to a battle late, _again_. Recently Sailor Mars, then Rei later on at their Senshi meetings, would go through her now-usual belittling that would leave her in tears. Even though she knew that she and Rei had never gotten along a hundred percent, lately the fire Senshi's temper had become worse. _'It started to get worse about a week ago now that I think about it. During that really tough youma battle in the afternoon.'_

On that particular day, Serena had had detention once again and had been unable to sneak or plead her way out. In the end she'd arrived incredibly late, almost a full hour, and none of the Senshi had been happy with that little fact. As soon as Sailor Moon had burst into the scene and _"moon dusted"_ the youma, she had been assaulted by Mars's scathing remarks about everything. The priestess had started in a deadly quiet voice, slowly describing all her fellow teen's faults in being a Senshi but at the end of her tirade, she had been red in the face because she had ended up screaming as hard as she possibly could.

Sailor Moon herself had been choking back sobs near the end of the rant but she refused to allow herself to stop Rei's words. The fact that none of the other Senshi had tried to stop the irate Sailor Mars, not the accusations themselves, was what hurt her the most though. _'When I looked at them, they all instantly looked away from my eyes. I saw what I needed to see though: they all believed Rei, at least partially.'_

When Mars had finally stopped, Sailor Moon had feebly tried to defend herself but she knew her words had fallen on deaf ears. None of the senshi wanted to hear excuses; they were all furious _'and with good reason too, though. I could try harder in school and not get detention so often. It's just so hard to be exactly how they want me to be.'_ In the end, the final say on the matter came from Sailor Mars in the force of a slap that knocked the blonde to the ground.

As Sailor Moon had look up tearfully (and fearfully) up at the raven-haired girl, her mind had reeled with amazement that her friend had actually physically struck her. Nonetheless, it was the look in the opposing girl's eyes that surprised her the most. A look of complete and utter loathing; Mars had looked as if she hated her with every fiber in her being that night.

As Sailors Moon and Mars stared at one another in silence, Mercury, who was on the sidelines with Jupiter, covered her mouth with a gasp before closely moving toward the downed girl to check for injuries. She never made it that far because as soon as the blonde had shakily stood to her feet, never breaking eye contact with Mars's glaring violet eyes, she'd been blocked by a black form while the smell of roses invaded the area like a tidal wave. Tuxedo Mask had finally made his appearance that night.

Sailor Moon had easily felt his presence minutes after her own arrival but he had never interfered in the fight, instead keeping a silent watch. At any rate, Moon herself had managed to destroy the monster within a few minutes of Mercury's careful strategies so there had never been time for him to help out properly. _'Then Rei's verbal attack began and I was too distracted to feel his presence anymore. I assumed he had been gone long, like he and Minako usually are.' _It became a surprise to everyone when Tuxedo Mask decided to interfere with their own personal fight that night. At that precise moment he had jumped down in front of Sailor Moon was when the chaos truly ensured.

The masked man instantly began yelling at the other Senshi, even the quiet and stunned Jupiter and Mercury. He accused them of, among other things, letting her -_**-Sailor Moon-- **_down and not focusing on what was important: that the youma had been destroyed, no matter how long it took. _'And some of the other things he said… I swear my ears bled with the names he called them. Then some of his words and insults didn't even seem to be in Japanese __**or **__English. I'm __**still **__trying to make sense of that, actually.'_

Nonetheless, Tuxedo Mask did exactly as he said he would --protect Sailor Moon and be there when she needed him most, all the while defending her and her capabilities as a Senshi. In reaction, Sailor Mars, and the newly appeared Luna, _--'who I know was hiding in the trees or wherever she goes, just like every battle'_--, didn't waste anytime in hurling their own insults and comments back at him while they justified their opinions of belittling Sailor Moon.

Mercury and Jupiter, stupefied with the events unfolding around them, could only continue to gape at the scene of all the fighting people while Sailor Moon firmly placed herself behind her savior. In her mind it had been the only way to hide the fact that she was so relieved Tuxedo Mask was actually defending her with no qualms or hesitation. _'To cut a long story short, that night was a big mess and I ended up being carried away by Tuxedo Mask after a particular nasty comment that I didn't catch coming from none other than Sailor Mars.' _Sailor Moon thought to herself sadly, _'Since then Rei has been even worse and has the shortest temper ever. Now she looks at me with barely concealed disgust, dislike, and suspicion way more than usual.'_

* * *

With a shake of her head, Sailor Moon ducked through a low hanging branch before finally bursting in on the battle. With a quick survey, she realized that while she had made it before the youma was destroyed, she should have arrived sooner. _Much _sooner.

Sailor Mercury lay beside a large oak tree unconscious and, by the look of it, seemed to have gotten thrown practically through the tree before falling where she now laid. As the warrior was about to race over to the Ice Senshi, she saw Sailor Jupiter race over instead. The blonde senshi watched in dread until she saw the brunette release an obvious sign of relief; Mercury was going to be all right.

With sheer determination, Sailor Moon glowered at the lion-like orange and red youma before her. _'I have to destroy it before it managed to hurt anyone else, especially my friends!'_ The feeling of eyes burning into the back of her head caused her to turn around to glimpse the complete loathing and murder etched into Mars's eyes. With a disdainful sniff in Moon's direction, the raven-haired Senshi looked away before firing a pair of flaming fire arrows at the youma, making it rear up in pain. Seconds after, a dozen golden hearts came rushing toward the youma from the right. Sailor Venus, who was favoring her left arm and left leg, gave the newly arrived Senshi a reassuring smile before walking over to Mars. _'How does she still manage to walk so determinedly with those injuries?' _Moon thought to herself, amazed. Within moments both Venus and Mars where engaged in a furiously whispered discussion with a glaring Luna joining in momentarily. With a guilty frown, Moon tried to ignore the sound of their whispers in favor of destroying the youma. _'Come on, Serena, concentrate!'_

The single Senshi took off her golden tiara and focused all her energy into the ruby jewel that lay in the center. The entire tiara soon became a golden-power charged discuss and was flying through the air straight toward the youma. The discuss hit the lion-like creature's chest dead-center, causing it to release an inhuman roar of pain and rage. As its roared died down, the monster collapsed into a pile of dust before blowing away into the night.

With an absentminded wince Sailor Moon caught her returning tiara, ignoring the usual blisters and burn marks that formed on her hands as a result of the tiara's power. As it cooled down once again, she slowly returned it back to its proper position on her forehand. Taking a second to breathe in deeply, she turned around to face where the others were still talking. _'Punishment time soon, no doubt.'_ To preoccupy herself from thoughts of her future reprimanding, she turned and watched as the still-transformed Jupiter helped a newly awakened Sailor Mercury stand before checking her once over again. Within moments Jupiter gave a wide grin and a thumbs up sign to the bluenette. _'A sign of good health. Thank goodness Ami will be okay.' _

As Mercury gave a shake of her head and smile at Jupiter's actions, she gave a quick wave to Sailor Moon that the blonde half-heartedly returned. '_I just wish I'd been here sooner.' _Her guilt ten-folded as she noticed the smaller senshi was leaning on Jupiter for support and limping slightly as the two walked away. With a heavy heart she watched them become parts of the shadows for several minutes. Straining her ears slightly, she could tell that Venus, Luna, and Mars were still conversing behind her with no signs of stopping. _'Might as well go home then if they're not going to say anything. I know no one's majority hurt now, sore no doubt, but not seriously injured at least. Nothing can keep me here longer than I'm needed or wanted then.'_

As the warrior's gloved hand had just begun to slid up to her broach, Luna's voice reached her ears. "Sailor Moon, remember what we were talking about earlier. Remember what will happen if you keep failing in your duties." The cat's voice was calm with a sense of furious finality that stilled the girl's movements.

'_Sounds like they're ready to feed me to the dogs.'_ Sailor Moon thought with a quirk of her lips, despite the tears that began to rain down her cheeks silently, _'Of course how can I forget what Luna and I talked about? How can I forget all those harsh words and the fact she believes I'm a "crybaby and irresponsible leader that can't get her act together and lead the others properly"? I highly doubt I'm going to forget that anytime soon.'_ Sailor Moon broke out into a full-fledged run as Luna's earlier words pounded themselves back into her head. _'Crybaby. Failure. Disappointment for the Princess. What _didn't _she call me? Then there's the fact that if I don't begin fighting the way _Luna _thinks I should, I'm going to be "put on indefinite probation and my leadership role striped away" and if I can't fight how she wants be to even after training, I'm "removed from the senshi team and my powers will permanently be taken away".'_

The blonde sucked in a harsh breath as she finally stopped on the other side of the park, far away from the others. She slowly slid down a tree to sit on the ground as tears continued to create silver paths on her face. _'And they want me to stay away from Tuxedo Mask more than ever now. Just because we don't know his true goal during fighting doesn't mean he's working for the Dark Kingdom like they think he might. So what if he has "mysterious actions"?', _She paused before making a face as she sniffled a few times. _'Just what are those actions anyways? Is saving me really all that mysterious? I know defeating a youma sure isn't. And now they say that if I continue to talk with him and defend him, I'm a traitor to the senshi and Princess Serenity! Doesn't that make a load of sense? I just know they'll never believe me when I say that he doesn't work for the Dark Kingdom. Just because he hasn't said he's one our side doesn't automatically make him on their side either. No one wants to hear it though. At any rate, Tuxedo Mask seems to be on __**my **__side. At least when he saves me and defends me that's what I like to think.'_

"Maybe it would be better if I just let them kick me out." She told herself as she began wiping off her tear stains, "Then they won't have to be so hard on me because I won't be in the way anymore. I mean, it's like they think I could care less about the welfare of the world. I'm not trying to be careless in my actions. I just… I can't simply wish to be the person they want be to be and have it happen. No matter how much I wish I could do that for them, it's not going to happen."

The blonde thought about what it would be like to leave the team before instantly deciding she won't be able to do it willingly. Leaving would mean that she would be helpless to save anyone from a youma if she had the chance; instead she would have to watch them fall prey to something she swore she would protect the world from. She knew she would be disappointing millions of people by quitting, let alone if they ever discovered she thought about it. _'And there's that promise I made to Tuxedo Mask and myself too. I promised not to give up, that I'd try my best and never stop fighting and protecting all those people. I have to honor that.'_

As if he knew that he was being thought about, a thornless red rose slowly drifted down from the tree limbs above her. As it landed in her blue-skirted lap, she smiled in remembrance. _'Exactly like that first rose.' _"We can do this Sailor Moon. Just stay strong, all right? We'll get through this. Together."

A flash of red caught her eyes and she turned to watch as her vigilant savior jumped from treetop to treetop out of the park and out of her searching sight. "I will Tuxedo Mask, I will." She answered softly into the still night around her, "And we'll make it together like we promised."

She knew that as long as she wasn't alone in the youma fights and that Tuxedo Mask kept believing in her when even she lost faith in herself, then she'd make it. She refused to allow the others make her break her promise and stop fighting. She would try her best and they'd make it together. She was sure of it.

* * *

First chapter done! Please review and if you have any questions about the chapter or the story in general, go ahead and ask! I'll answer the best that I can without giving too much away.

REVISION EDIT:

_Summary of events_

- No Artemis; no one knows he exists or where he's at.

- Luna hid during Moon's first battle (and all later battles), forcing the newly formed Senshi to stumble around, unaware of what to do.

- Scared and petrified during that first battle, Moon sent out a telepathic call of "Endymion! Help me, please!". Tuxedo Mask arrived minutes later and single handily killed the youma. Luna doesn't know he did and Moon never told her.

- When Sailor Mars appeared, Jadeite died.

- When Venus appeared, Nephrite died.

- Mars became exceedingly violent toward Sailor Moon about a week ago and slapped her. Tuxedo Mask immediately came to her defense when no one else did.

- Venus came only two weeks ago so she is practically a stranger to everyone. Serena wonders why Venus had her powers before Luna gave them to her. No one asks Minako though.

- Luna told Serena to get her act together and be a better Senshi and leader. If she doesn't (and doesn't stop defending TM) she will be put on probation. Worst case scenario is that her powers are stripped away and she will no longer be a Senshi.

_Tiger Celeste_


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

Note: I just want to say that this is my first fanfic story. I would greatly appreciate reviews and constructive criticism. Please NO flames. Despite popular belief there is a difference between the two and flames can be very hurtful things. Just thought I should point that out.

_Second Revision Post Date: 5/2/09 Fixed minor errors; slight revisions._

_Revision Post Date: 9/13/08 Added Haruna detention scene; added/edited arcade and park scenes; minor edits to last scene. Changed from First person to third person. Added summary of events._

_Original Post Date: 1/29/07_

* * *

Serena frowned slightly as she looked out of the window of her second story classroom. She didn't know how to tell her mother about yet another failed math quiz score._ 'I doubt she'll be happy that this one is a D+ instead of another D-. And to think that people believe Sailor Moon, the Champion of Love and Justice, is this super powerful girl who can do no wrong.'_ Her smile was bittersweet. _'What they'll never know is that I'm also Serena Tsukino. A sixteen year old crybaby that is no different than any other civilian. Then again… people do say that I have the most caring and forgiving hearts in the world. But, that can't be very special though, right? I know a lot of forgiving people.'_

"Serena? How is that paper coming along?"

The blonde's head snapped over to the teacher's desk. One of her teachers and her usual detention monitor, Ms. Haruna, sat there grading some paperwork that looked a lot like the math homework that we were supposed to turn in this morning. _'Homework I didn't do because of last night's youma attack…' _

"Serena?" Said girl blinked a few times, watching as her teacher frowned worriedly and laid down her pen. "Is everything all right?"

"Oh, sorry, Ms. Haruna. I was just thinking." She replied with a sheepish smile, "Nothing's wrong."

The redhead frowned suspiciously but after a few moments finally nodded. "Fine. Be sure you finish that paper. You can daydream after it's done."

Serena nodded quickly. "Of course. I'll do my best." As she said this, she internally winced as she looked down at the paper. Not a single math problem had been finished and instead she had been absently doodling. Yet another picture of the moon had been drawn in the right-hand corner; one always seemed to appear somewhere when she let her mind wander. To her surprise, however, she had also ended up doodling her family. There was her caring, yet stern mother, Ikuko Tsukino talking to Serena's oblivious and over-protective father, Kenji Tsukino.

She grinned as she realized she'd even drawn her dork of a little brother Shingo. Like usual, he was sticking his tongue out at her. _'I swear he's not an eleven year old; he acts like a spoiled three year most of the time. He is extremely annoying and a little pest.' _Her smile faltered slightly as she traced over the two-dimension version of her brother. _'Sometimes it feels like we're more than just four and a half years apart. It feels like eons when I'm coming home from a battle. If I have a say, he'll never have to see a youma in person. He may be a pest but he is _my _pest and I'll protect him with everything I got.'_

Her eyes wandered back to her drawing of her parents, thinking about how she would protect them with everything she had, too. _'They're all so loving and caring and I love them too much to let them down. It's the reason why I agreed to keep my Sailor Moon identity a secret when Luna forbade me from telling anyone else except for the other Senshi. I know that I would just make them worry about me in every fight and I don't want them to carry that burden. Then there's the fact that if the Dark Kingdom somehow got word that people knew our civilian identities, they would be in so much danger.' _She frowned in thought, idly tracing the faces of her family with her pencil. _'Even if I can't tell anyone, especially my family, about my secret identity to protect them and me, I still feel guilty that I have to make up lies and tell half-truths about where I'm going or who I might be with. It's not fair to them but as long as they can be safe…'_

"I must say those are nice drawings, Serena." A voice said suddenly, making her jump a few feet into the air and clutch her wildly beating heart.

With a guilty flush, she looked up to see Ms. Haruna leaning over the desk and looking at her math sheet. "I…I…" She paused as she hung her head. "Sorry, Ms. Haruna."

The woman sighed, rubbing her forehead tiredly as she leaned against the desk in front of the girl. "Serena. I just don't know what to say. …How are you ever planning to pass your sophomore year if you continue to daydream and not do your work?"

The blonde frowned, the thought having occurred to her many times lately. "I don't know… I'm trying but I just…" She stopped, unable to reveal the reason why she wasn't turning her in homework and doing so poorly in her other schoolwork. _'When you fight in the dead of night some nights, it's hard to concentrate the next day when you've only gotten three hours of sleep at the most. Then I either don't understand my work because I feel asleep in class or I just don't have time because of the Senshi meetings or more battles.'_

"You're not a terrible student." Ms. Haruna commented, making Serena raise incredulous eyebrows. She sure thought she was a terrible student; at least since she became a Senshi. "You _are _trying, Serena. I've seen work from your other classes. When you do manage to do your work, most of it is correct. It's just that you don't manage to turn in a lot of your assignments or finish the ones you do turn in. You have the makings of a brilliant mind, you just don't apply yourself."

The girl frowned. "Do you really mean that?"

"Of course." The redhead gave a small smile. "Look, Serena. I've been your homeroom teacher since you entered high school and in the past year I've watched you fall into … a rut, I guess you could say. You struggled your freshman year but you did well overall. You got C's, sure, but it wasn't until about March that your grades dropped into D's and F's continually."

Serena stayed silent. _'March… I became a Senshi for the first time about the end of February all those months ago. I had hoped all those studying sessions with Ami were helping since then. I guess not…'_

"I'm not prying into your personal life." Ms. Haruna commented as she noticed the frown on her student's face, "I just would like you to know that I am here to talk if you ever want to."

"I am trying, Ms. Haruna." The blonde finally responded quietly, "I mean… Ami's been helping me a lot. Since she's in a lot of advanced classes, she's usually already studied what I'm studying. But… I just _can't _do my work."

"I know you are trying. If you had been able to finish that last math quiz-" The woman pointed to the crumpled up paper next to the blonde's book bag, "-you probably would have gotten a B. It's obvious that you just don't understand because you always seem to fall asleep on me. I know I'm boring but I had hoped that you would stay awake a least once a week…"

The girl bit her lip, an embarrassed blush dusting her cheeks. "I know. I don't mean to fall asleep, I just do."

"I understand." The redhead giggled suddenly. "I used to fall asleep all the time in school too."

Serena's blue eyes widened. "You _did_?" She gaped as she received a nod in return. "But-- but you're a _teacher_."

"I was a student before being a teacher, Serena." Ms. Haruna said dryly, "I wasn't very interested in anything my teachers talked about. All I wanted to do was spend time with my friends and go to the mall; meet cute boys and listen to music. That was my life until I got to my junior year."

"What happened?"

"I almost failed." The woman frowned in thought, tapping her chin. "About a week into my junior year, my guidance councilor called me into his office to tell me that if I didn't start getting my act together I wouldn't have enough credits to graduate. He told me that if I continued down the road I was on academically, I wouldn't be able to get into a college, something both my parents and I wanted. It put things into perspective for me."

"And just like that you started getting good grades?"

The redhead's lips twitched. "No. I wish, but no. It was hard. I had to stop hanging out with my friends as often and I had to work my butt off to make up all the classes I had already failed. It took a lot of time and dedication. I even had to give up the summer between my junior and senior year to make up a few more credits I would have missed. In the end though, no matter how many parties or movie nights I missed, I think it was worth it. I got into college, even though it wasn't some prestigious one. Then after a while I decided to become a teacher."

Serena smiled. "So you could help more pathetic people like me?"

Ms. Haruna grinned. "Nope. I liked having the power to do this." She suddenly snapped the edge of Serena's desk with a ruler, making the girl jump into the air. She chuckled. "I always wanted to do that to people when I was younger. It's fun."

The blonde rolled her eyes, trying to calm down her heartbeat. "Sure, Ms. Haruna."

"Don't fault me for my quirks." The woman said, crossing her arms over her chest, "Everyone is unique. I like scaring children, you have your hairstyle."

Serena subconscious reached up to touch her hair. It _was _unique like her teacher said. It was ankle-length, blonde and usually kept up in the "odango atama" style. '_At least "odango atama" is what Darien (and now everyone else! Including myself!) call my hair style of two buns on either side of my head with the rest of my hair flowing out in streamers from the buns.'_

"I guess my hair is kind of unique." She murmured as she twirled one of the streamers of hair absently, "You don't see many Japanese people with natural blonde hair."

"Don't forget your eyes." Ms. Haruna added, "You really are unique, Serena. A Japanese girl with blonde hair _and _blue eyes. It's more than just rare."

The younger female ducked her head. "I guess they make me, well, _me _huh?"

"They do." Haruna said softly before looking around the room. They were the only ones in the detention room, something that truly didn't surprise her. "You're free to go. I think we've been here long enough."

"You have a date, don't you?" Came the sly response even as Serena hurriedly placed the few pieces of work she had out into a folder.

The teacher rolled her eyes. "Do you really want me to retract this offer for an early dismissal? You're being released almost thirty-five minutes early."

Serena's head snapped up and looked over at the clock above the teacher's desk. Ms. Haruna was right; usually she was released at 4:10 but it was only 3:35. She grinned, thinking about how she would be able to enjoy a milkshake before her friends got to the arcade and dragged her into Senshi talk. "Nope, nope. I'm more than happy to leave early." She said as she stood up, her book bag in her arms.

"Then get out of here." The redhead ordered as she playfully waved her ruler in the girl's face, "Go hang out with your friends and do your homework."

Serena smiled. "Fine, I'll try." She walked away before suddenly stopped in the doorway, looking back. "Hey, Ms. Haruna?" She waited until the woman looked up from the window she was looking down in. "Thanks."

The woman smiled. "No problem, Serena. I'm not a bad person. I'm only strict because I care about my students."

The girl nodded and gave a short wave before disappearing out of the room, her mind racing with all that her teacher had said. _'I guess I could ask Ami to help me more with my work… Mom would be happy too if I could do better.'_

* * *

It seemed like mere minutes before Serena walked into the Crown Arcade. She smiled as the bell above the sliding doors jiggled in welcome. If she wasn't at school, home, Rei's Temple, or saving Tokyo she was usually here. Unless she had detention or had to do something else, she would immediately come to the Crown Arcade after school every day.

Out of habit, the blue-eyed girl looked around for her friends only to meet an empty booth. She sighed as she looked up to the clock on the wall and realized no one would get here for at least a half hour. None of them would have thought she would be out of detention so early. _'I wonder what they'd do if I didn't have detention at all.' _She giggled at the thought of their shocked faces as she walked up to the counter and sat down on one of the stools. She absently placed her pink and white bag on the counter beside her before looking around for her friend Motoki Futuraha. He was only a few years older than her and worked at the arcade to pay for his tuition at Tokyo University.

"Hey there, Serena!" She spun at the chipper voice, seeing the said man walking up to the counter from the back room. "You're here early."

She grinned. "Yup! I think Ms. Haruna had a date. In any case, she let me out early."

"She still bemoaning over that boyfriend of hers?" The blonde man asked with a chuckle, well accustomed to Serena's stories about her math teacher.

"Yeah." The girl replied with an eye roll, "They're back on now, though. The other day he surprised her with flowers in class."

"Hmm. So, you want anything?" Motoki asked happily as he leaned against the counter, "Food? Drink?"

"You know it! One of your Triple Chocolate Shakes, please." Came the grinning reply, "It's been a long day."

The man nodded and flashed her a quick smile before spinning on his heel to face the counter behind him. As he bent down to get the gallon of ice cream, Serena looked over to the empty booth that had been claimed by her and her friends. Times likes these, she wondered what she would do without them. _'Since we've become Senshi, it seems we're all inseparable. They're the closest friends I have and I know it's because of our joint secret. But, I think that even if we weren't Senshi we would have all found each other anyways. They're the most loyal, caring, and interesting people I know. We all complement each other I think and we all share so much with each other.' _

She smiled in thought as she turned back around and absently watched as Motoki fixed her chocolate drink. _'The Senshi really are my best friends. At least Ami and Makoto are my closest, best friends. They really are the best and I'm glad they consider me such a good friend in return. I know we have each other backs in a youma fight or not. I just wish that Rei and Minako were as close as Ami and Makoto are to me. With Rei, it seems like we just can't be together for a long time without an explosive fight and lots of tears. I just don't understand what I have done to make her not like me, especially lately. I know that she is a good friend when she wants to be though and I know that she considers me a good friend of hers too. I just have to get her to admit it somehow.'_

She sighed as she placed her hand in her upturned palm. _'With Minako… I just wish I could spend more time with her. She's only met with us outside of the battles twice; once when she introduced herself and once a few days ago at a Senshi meeting. She's so secretive and acts like she's not allowed to get closer to people. For whatever reason, I don't know. I'm determined to be her friend though! I'll find a way to get her to spend more time with us. I guess I'll just have to find a common interest. She did say she liked shopping. Maybe a group trip to the mall?'_

"One Triple Chocolate Milkshake." Motoki said with flourish, startling Serena as he placed the drink in front of her dazed self.

With a quick mental shake, she looked up into the man's green eyes and grinned. "Thanks, Motoki! It's just what I need after a day like today."

The arcade worker frowned in concern as he leaned against the counter again, his arms crossed over his white apron-clad chest. "Friday not treating you well, Serena?"

The blonde shook her head and took a big sip of the delicious drink. When she pried her lips away from her straw, she sighed. "No. Most of it was awful. The teachers are really being tough about the midterms coming up next month. In almost every class we're taking practice tests and quizzes." She groaned suddenly, partly in brain-freeze but mostly about the grades she was sure to get. "I think my brain is turning into mush with overuse."

"Aw, poor Odango Atama. I'm curious as to way your brain hasn't turned into mush already though. I figured that would of happened some time ago." Serena stiffened as she heard the sarcastic voice but practically froze as she realized just how close it was coming from.

Darien Shields, a jerk-wad and her self-declared enemy, was practically talking into her ear --and it tickled! She opened her mouth but was distracted from responding as the smell of roses and something uniquely Darien surrounded her. _'Oh, this is so weird. I shouldn't like how he smells!' _She chided to herself mentally, _'And I most definitely should not be feeling like I've been even closer to him than now. This is the closest he's ever come and it should not feel familiar and especially not right!' _She glowered, desperately trying to ignore the fragrance around her and not think about the man being closer. Absently she brought her hands to cup her milkshake and its coldness was what finally snapped her out of her stupor. "Shut up jerk-face! Can't I have _one _moment of peace without you disturbing me? And how many times do I have to tell you that my name is _Ser-e-na_! _Not _Odango Atama."

"Ouch Odango. I thought you enjoyed my company." The black-haired man replied with mock-hurt as he clutched his heart and moved away to sit on the stool next to Serena's. He turned toward the amused Motoki that was silently watching the conversation with a smile and shaking head. Moments later the two men were exchanging quick greetings and Darien was asking for his normal black coffee.

"I enjoy it has much as I would being ran over by a school bus." Serena retorted with a frown as she watched Motoki pour the coffee; she didn't bother trying to keep the disgusted expression of her face. _'I'll never understand how anyone can drink that stuff and actually like it. It's so bitter and disgusting. Chocolate is way better in my opinion.'_

"Sure, sure. You know that you like talking with me. I know I just _love_ to hear your screeching voice every time we talk. So… besides falling tests today what have you been up to?" Darien asked with his infuriating grin as Motoki placed his coffee in front of him, "Knock any unsuspecting pedestrians off the sidewalk? Oh I know, did you trip and fall over your hair again?"

Serena glared, privately glad that the man was sitting down. If he wasn't he would be practically dwarfing her five- foot-five form with his _--'what is it? Like six-foot-three form? I don't even reach his shoulders! No one should be allowed to be that tall!'_ He was still smirking at her, so she narrowed her glare. "That only happened once, Darien. _And _if I remember correctly it was _your_ fault! Besides how is it any of your business what I do? Why can't you just leave me alone!?" She huffed before turning her full attention toward Motoki. _'If I'm lucky I can ignore him until the others get here.'_

"I just can't, Odango." He replied, dashing the blonde's hopes as she turned back toward him. He lifted the coffee to his lips, his smirk widening over the rim. "Your oh-_so_-terrific personality just begs for me to tease you. I mean the hair, the grades, the screeching; how can I stay away?"

She glowered, fuming silently. _'I really should throw my shoe at him.'_ She knew there wasn't any true hate in Darien toward her, though, and she lacked any for him. _'If he would let go of all the teasing, we could probably be really close friends.' _Her brow crinkled as she took a sip of her slowly melting drink. _'Then again, we are the total opposites.' _

She frowned, stealthily taking a closer at the man and studying him. Darien was tall, had the darkest blue eyes that looked like the ocean at night _--'Not that I've been staring at them to notice that or anything!'--_, and his hair was black and seemed to shine the same color as his eyes in the light. He was also muscular _--'Not that I've noticed that either!'-- _and was tan. In looks, they were the total opposites. She was petite, and while her eyes were blue too, they were clear and lighter in color. Her hair was blonde and she'd been told a few times that it seemed to glow silver in the light. She was barely muscular and that was only because of her daily races to school and the youma battles. And she wasn't tan in the slight, she was pale.

'_Personality is differently were it counts though.'_ Serena thought as she quickly looked away from the man, realizing she was practically checking him out, _'There really is something wrong with me. Back to the point! Darien's personality is way too different from mine!'_

And that, she knew, was also very true. She was bright, outgoing, and loud. Darien was _--'Not really dark. More like a gray.'--_ and he was quiet and not very social. _'Not to mention he's also way more mature than I am. I mean he's only eighteen but he acts like an old man sometimes. All sullen-like.' _Her lips quirked in amusement as he began digging through his side pack before pulling out a thick textbook. _'Then there's the smartness. Darien is definitely one of the smartest people I know. I even think he might be smarter than Ami and she's a genius in almost every subject. He gets straight A's in school (and unfortunately loves to rub that fact in my face) and he's a freshman at Tokyo University! Talk about prestigious university! I knew a kid that was trying to get in there and he couldn't get past the first sheet on the entrance exam.'_

"Odango, I know I'm handsome but you need to stop staring."

She gasped, her face flaming red in anger and embarrassment. "I was not staring!" She snapped quickly as she turned her head away from his direction, "And you are _not _handsome in the least." _'Oh really?'_ A traitorous voice whispered before she quickly squashed it. _'Stupid thoughts! I must be spending too much time with Rei. She's the one with a crush on the jerk. Not me.'_

She crunched her nose at the thought. _'I really don't know what she seems in him. Darien's usually a cold and aloof person. He's a natural loner; as far as I know his only friend is Motoki. Now that I think about it, I've never even seen him genuinely talk to anyone besides Motoki, and well maybe me, while he is in the arcade. Instead he surrounds himself with books and homework and stays that way until he leaves. Then there's all the constant teasing and the arguments we have! Even the first time I met him he teased me about my hairstyle. After he got to know me better he added my grades, crybaby-ness, actually just about everything else. I mean, really. What have I ever done to Darien to make him pick on me so much?'_

Her lips quirked as she looked down at her milkshake. _'All right. I should be saying __**besides **__throwing all those homework papers, tests, insults and shoes at him; I guess you could say that I give as good as I get during our fights.' _She eyed the man out of the corner of her eye, watching the focused expression on his face as he read something out of his textbook. _'We really have an interesting friendship, don't we Darien? If we can even call it a friendship, that is. I met you the day after I became Sailor Moon and from that day on, a whole eight months ago, we've had constant arguments about everything and anything. You pester me, I pester you. We run into each other when we don't want to and we can get pretty vicious sometimes.'_

She frowned as a thought occurred to her. _'I think I've always considered Darien a friend. I don't, and haven't for a long time, disliked him as much as I did the first time we met. Or did I even dislike him at all? No, no, I think I did. That was when I was thinking about how I'd failed that morning's pop quiz because I had learned I was a Senshi and had been fighting a youma the night before. Then he came along and I hit him with the quiz when I threw it behind me. I wanted to hit him so bad with my book bag.' _She grinned. _'Actually, I still want to hit him most of the time. But he really is a mystery to everyone, like he admitted to me once. One minute he's mean to me and the next he's being nice to some kid. He can be really kind and sweet when he's not throwing scathing remarks my way. I'll never admit that out loud mind you, I'm barely able to admit that to myself, but, I think he could very well be my best friend in some bizarre way.' _She groaned silently. _'I can just imagine all the teasing I'd get from him if he ever found out that little fact.'_

The blonde sighed, shaking her head as she realized she'd drank all of her milkshake; she hadn't even managed to enjoy it. _'I think that, no matter what, nothing can change the fact that Darien is oddly enough one of my friends. Or change the fact that I'm pretty sure he'll continue to tease me for the rest of our lives. But, at least I know that he doesn't really mean most of his comments. When I do get really hurt by them and end up crying, he looks all guilty and panicked. Even if he does try to hide it. When I cry, it doesn't bring that unholy glee in his eyes like it does in Rei's sometimes. If anything, when he teases me and we end up fighting, it brings this playful look into his eyes; a look that makes him seem more alive. Because of that playful look and his guilt when I cry, I know that he doesn't hate me, he just -unfortunately- loves to annoy me. I wish that we could be civil to one another. But… I think that if we did, I would miss our daily banters more than I would like to admit. They're something that keeps me sane in my normal life. Without those banters and Tuxedo Mask's encourage and support I don't know what I would do. I'm just thankful that Darien is a constant fixture in my life; I know he won't be leaving me anytime soon. He'll never know just how much of a silent supporter he's been in my decision to stay a Senshi this whole time.'_

* * *

Motoki frowned as he continued to wave a hand in front of Serena's face. He'd been doing it for about two minutes but his friend never noticed. Instead she had this vacant look in her eyes and would continually glance of the corner of her eye to look at Darien. "Serena? Serena?" He sighed and finally resorted to flickering her nose. He smiled in victory as she startled, a hand flying up to cradle the abused appendage.

"What'd you do that for, Motoki?" She asked surly as she rubbed her nose.

"You've just been staring out into space or at Darien for minutes." He said in exasperation, "I was beginning to wonder if something was wrong with you."

She shrugged, a slight blush returning. She was happy that Darien was too engrossed into his work to hear what Motoki said. He did not want him to tease her about staring at him repeatedly. _'It's bad enough that it's true! There really is something wrong with me!'_ "Sorry." She grinned sheepishly. "It's just been a daydreaming kind of week. Anyways, how are you doing? I never did ask."

He sighed, fiddling with a glass of what looked like soda. "I've been good; tired though. My professors are really piling on the work with midterms next month. Between working here and doing schoolwork, I've been really busy trying to get everything done on time."

The blonde frowned in concern, noticing just how tired the man's green eyes looked. "I'm sorry, Motoki. I really hope you do well on all your tests. Not that you need the extra luck, of course. I'm sure you'll do fine without it." She grinned. "Make sure you have a little fun soon though, so you won't be all stressed out when you actually do take the tests. I like to do that."

He chuckled. "Thanks for the luck and advice, Serena. I hope you do well too. I'm not the one you should be reminding to take breaks from studying, though. That would be Darien." He rolled his eyes, nodding his head pointedly towards their friend and the book he was pouring over.

As she turned to look at Darien as well, both of them watched as he began frowning at something in the book, his brow furrowed slightly. Before they realized what was happening, he was routing around in his side pack and his hands emerged seconds later with a black notebook. Serena tilted her head slightly and read _'Organic Chemistry Notebook' _scrawled across its cover in silver ink. Moments later the book was placed on the counter and Darien was pulling a blue pen out of its spiral binding. With a look of triumph in his eyes _--'Was it just me or did they just shine gold there?' _Serena thought in amazement-- the dark-haired man started furiously writing something in the book. Every once in a while he would turn a page in either book and take a moment to read but then he was immediately writing once more. Both Motoki and Serena gapped in astonishment as the man quickly filled eight full pages front and back, top to bottom, with notes in under three and a half minutes.

It was about that time Darien absently reached out with his left hand for his coffee. It was almost to his lips before he glanced down into it and saw he had already drank it all. _'Figures.'_ He grumbled to himself before shaking his head and looking up to ask for a refill. As he did so, he noticed how both Motoki and Serena were looking in his direction with looks of astonishment. His brow creased in bafflement and he looked behind him to see what had the duo was transfixed. He found nothing of interest to look at except perhaps the little boy that was throwing spit wads at an affectionate couple a few tables away with a disgusted look on his face. _'That's not it though. I wonder what they're looking at.'_

He turned back around, still bewildered, to see the two clearly trying to shake off their amazement. Odango was quickly looking from his notebook, to his book, to him, before she started the process over again while she blinked madly and shook her head every so often. Motoki himself wasn't in better condition; he was staring at Darien unmoving and unblinking with a hint of admiration and something the man couldn't quite identify. In any case, the look in the arcade worker's green eyes instantly put Darien on edge and made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. Even as Serena stopped looking so astonished, Motoki continued to stare at him unwaveringly. Unnerved, not to mention somewhat irritated and angry by their looks, the dark-haired man grew defensive. "What is your problem?"

Serena snapped out of her thoughts and quickly shook her head. "Nothing. I just… the way you were studying." She shook her head, still in a slight daze. _'No wonder he's had straight A's since he was little. If I could do that I would too.'_

Darien frowned, eyeing Motoki suspiciously as he nodded in reply. Yet, when the man still didn't stop staring at him like he'd grown another head, he sighed and began putting things away. _'If people are just going to gawk at me like that, I might as well go home to study instead. There's no one there to look at me like I'm a science experiment.' _The dark-haired man swung his side pack's strap over his neck before standing up. He barely took time to reach into his pocket for money and throw it down on the counter roughly before he was walking away. He made it through the arcade doors without incident, not giving a single look back or goodbye to the two.

"Darien! _Wait! _"

He didn't even bother to stop or turn around as he heard Serena's frantic call. Instead he picked up his pace and just keep walking down the sidewalk. If he made it to the park, he'd be able to cut through and get to his apartment; it was the fastest and shortest way from here. _'Hopefully the tranquility of the park can get me to calm down by the time I'm home too.' _He sighed, running a hand through his hair. _'I just don't understand why I'm so mad over something so petty; it's not usually like me. No, that's a lie. I know why I got so mad.'_

His lips pressed in a thin line as his footsteps quickened in agitation. _'It brought up all those damn memories. Teachers thinking I was cheating before growing ecstatic when they learned I wasn't. Hypocritical idiots. Then the other students acting like I'm some kind of miracle-worker. Always asking for answers or to complete assignments. Expecting me to cheat for them just because I have this "super fricken smart brain, man!"' _Darien frowned, remembering the particular classmate who had said that. He didn't remember his name --he didn't want to-- but he _did _remember that he'd been the one who had brought up the cheating accusation when he won't give up answers to something or other.

In the end, he proved everyone wrong when he got every single question right on five tests; all made only hours before he'd taken them. _'Then that's when the teachers' joy came in.'_ He shook his head, glad he was out of that high school. _'As for them at the arcade… it was like they'd never seen anyone study before. It's not a rare occurrence.' _He smirked, thinking of Odango. _'Okay, for most people it's not. There are others who it is very rare for.' _He instantly rolled his eyes, realizing he wasn't being all that fair to the girl. _'Still. She should be used to it considering all that studying her blue-haired friend does.'_

"But that doesn't explain or excuse Motoki's behavior. Not to mention that odd look in his eyes either. He looked like he just found some big secret or something." He pondered out loud, "Yet that doesn't make any sense to me. He's had to have seen me study like that before."

He shook his head again, deciding to leave the matter alone and concentrate on the nature around him. The gentle swaying of trees in the wind, the leaves dancing in the air, the sweet fragrance of the rose bush he had just passed, and everything else. Slowly, as he walked deeper through the park, he started to calm down and the tension began to seep out of his body. Nature was always something that he could seem to relate to and it always managed to calm him down greatly, even on his worse days.

When he was younger he never understood why he felt so in tuned to nature the way he did. Sometimes he knew --just _knew_-- when a huge thunder and lightning storm was approaching on the horizon. And there were times he could accurately approximate when the rain would stop, as well. Both without ever having to look at the news. Then, every once in a while, he could instinctively tell when a plant he was passing was sick or dying --even if it looked perfectly healthy. Especially, though, there was the way he could conjure any form of flora with a simple thought and a flick of his wrist. When he became Tuxedo Mask, he surmised that his strange abilities had something to do with that, but sometimes he wondered if that was true. _'If nothing else, at least my peculiar abilities are finally being put to good use during the youma fights. Those steel tip roses can be a dangerous weapon when they need to be.'_

Still, he couldn't help but wish he knew exactly how or where he got his strange powers from. _'I mean, they're not normal by any standards. Not even the Senshi have powers like mine from what I've seen. I can just imagine if they were seen or discovered by the wrong people. Exploitation and science experiments abounds.'_ He winced as a thought occurred to him, _'Heaven forbid, anyone making the connection between me and Tuxedo Mask if they ever saw my powers.'_

That wasn't something he wished to happen anytime soon, let along ever. The Dark Kingdom would have great fun torturing all the people he associated with (no matter how few they are). He'd end up having to surrender to them if they ever discovered his civilian identity. But, of course, he highly doubted the Dark Kingdom _wouldn't _still seek out his friends and torture them. Either for information, or the fun of it. _'No. It's better if I don't do anything out of the normal anymore. I guess I'm have to study less at the arcade if people are going to look at me like that…'_

"_**Darien! Will you please stop?!"**_

He winced as Serena's shout echo in the area. _'Looks like Odango finally caught up to me. I thought she would have given up and gone back to the arcade already. So much for that.'_ He made a split second decision and ducked down the path he was approaching. _'No way I can talk to her now. I'd only end up saying something I shouldn't and making her cry. Calmed down or not, I'll just get mad all over again. That look in Motoki's eyes put me on edge too much.' _As he heard fast paced footsteps approaching, he quickly glanced around. When he didn't see or hear anyone, he walked a little way into the trees and silently jumped into one. It was only seconds later that he was watching Serena appear, huffing and puffing as she ran full force down the trail he was just on. He smiled as she moaned and bent over, resting her hands on her knees.

"That man… should… _not_… be able to… walk… that fast." She complained in between pants and gasps of air. She wheezed for a few more moments before straightening out. "God! I feel like I ran a marathon just to apologize! He only had a-- what? Five minute start? Stupid long legged man…"

Well hidden in the tree, Darien grinned in amusement. _'She must not realize how fast she's running in the morning on the race to school. And talk about long legs…'_ He stopped himself short, unable to believe he had just willingly thought that. _'Ignoring my lapse in sanity, come on Odango! Leave, will you? I know you want to apologize but trust me when I saw that you really shouldn't talk to me right now. I'll get mad, you'll cry, then I'll feel horrible. It's an endless cycle that I don't want to even think about right now, let alone participate in.'_

"Now where did that jerk go, so I can apologize and drag him back to the arcade…?" Serena mused as she looked this way and that. She saw bushes of marigolds and roses, some patches of daises, and trees. No sign of Darien, his tell-tell tall form, or his signature _--'and hideous'-- _green jacket anywhere. _'There's not even another person around to ask if they saw him either!'_ She heaved a disappointed sigh when she didn't spot him no matter what direction she looked in. She couldn't even tell which way he might have gone. "That prick… Where could he have gone to so fast? I know he heard my voice. I saw that cringe when I asked him to stop; he knew I was coming…" She said to herself sadly, unknowingly making the young man hiding in a tree not far away flinch in guilt.

'_Come on, Odango. Leave it alone. I'm weird and a jerk. I got it.'_ Darien groaned silently, thinking about his failures every time he actually _did _try to say something even remotely kind to the girl. _'I just can't stop blurting out a teasing comment. I'm just not social enough to be nice, I guess. I'm the mean guy who harasses a high school sophomore.'_

"Stupid Darien." The blonde growled quietly after a minute, making the man lean forward slightly to hear her better, "I was only going to apologize for looking at him like that. It's not like I _meant _to do it, let alone make him mad enough to leave the arcade like that. I was just so amazed. Not even Ami studies like that and I thought it was pretty incredible." She sighed, casting one final look around. She stopped, staring at the tree the object of her search was unknowingly hiding in, before shaking her head seconds later. "Wherever you are, Darien, I really am sorry. I never meant to hurt your feelings. No one likes their feelings hurt and I'd never do it on purpose. Not even to you."

The said man watched her walk away in something akin to astonishment. Even after all the horrible and mean things he said to her, she still didn't want to hurt his feelings. Darien shook his head in wonder. _'Her heart really is too big and forgiving. But, I don't deserve her kindness. I'm just the guy that teases and hurts her constantly. It would be better used on someone worth it; someone that deserves it.'_ Yet, even as he thought that, he knew that he was grateful Serena bothered to talk and argue with him. He could always count on her to be around unfailingly for their banters. _'She's just always around and I have to say I am thankful for that. Without the bubbly, compassionate, Odango Atama-headed girl that is no telling what my world would be like. It would be duller than my life already is, that's for sure.'_ He stopped, realizing just how mushy he was sounding. _'I have to stop before I get ahead of myself. She's Odango, I'm Darien, and we argue and tease each other. That's what we do.'_

He frowned thoughtfully as he looked around to make sure no one was in sight still. When there was no sign of anyone, he stealthy jumped down from the tree. As he adjusted his side bag, he briefly glanced over in the direction Serena was last in. "I'm the one who is sorry Odango. Not even you looking at me like I'm some science experiment is a fraction of what I deserve for my behavior toward you." He whispered quietly.

As he began walking away toward his apartment, in the opposite direction Serena left in, he missed the young girl with a peculiar hairstyle hiding behind a clump of trees. With a sniffle and quick dash of a hand across her eyes, Serena slowly came out of the trees and watched him walk away. She smiled watery as she shook her head. _'No matter what you think Darien, you don't deserve to have your feelings hurt. No one does but especially not you, you big idiot.' _She smiled slightly as she began running back to the arcade. The others were sure to be there by now and she couldn't afford to be late _again_.

* * *

The moment that Serena dashed out in order to retrieve Darien, it took Motoki yet another minute to shake off his stupor. Once he did, however, he calmly strode to the back room. With wary glanced left and right for any snoopers or eavesdroppers, he ducked his way into the room and secured the lock. Feeling moderately safe now, he silently made his way behind a pile of cardboard boxes with plain, generic labels of _Napkins _and _Straws_. Without hesitation he pushed a few out of the way and bent down to the ground that was revealed. Instantly he found what he wanted: a latch that one had to know what they were looking for in order to find it.

With a great heave, he managed to pull the door up and then proceeded to jump inside. As he straightened up from his crouched position, the door snapped shut above him with an menacing thud. He was immersed in almost total darkness, the only light coming from the few scattered lights had been installed that led down to the seemingly unknown path in front on him. Despite the darkness, he confidently walked down the hall until he was met by a large iron cast door. He ran his hand over an indiscernible symbol, worn away with time, and turned the knocker it was on counterclockwise. When a faint clicking sound was heard, Motoki, with a great shove on his part, pushed open the door and advanced inside the room revealed to him. He winced slightly as the heavy door slammed shut behind him and the walls seemed to rattle ominously.

If anyone would have seen the room was currently in, one could say that it better suited something from a secret intelligence service, not a dusty room hidden away in an arcade. The room itself was cold and dark, the darkness preventing any prying eyes from seeing all the weaponry and gadgetry spread about the room. On the farthest wall away from the entrance stood a ordinary-looking black and navy blue computer with a large flat screen monitor hung up behind it. The monitor's glow was the only light throughout the whole room and it enabled Motoki to steer himself. Once he spotted the computer, he confidently marched towards it, the click on his shoes being the solitary noise penetrating the quietness of the room.

"Enter name." A mechanical-sounding voice rang out from the computer once the man reached its sensors.

"T11TMK." Came the now-stoic voice of the usually fun loving arcade worker. Motoki hated this procedure with a passion but it was unavoidable for the time being. It was his duty and he had to do it. Even so, that didn't stop him from wishing that he was back at headquarters where he could simply watch from there and not have to be involved with the dirty work. Who knows what he would have to face while in Tokyo.

"Confirmation number."

"17654490-ADR."

"Correct. Welcome T11TMK. Please enter destination."

"Headquarters."

"State business that you have with Headquarters."

"Pressing issues involving my station in Tokyo, Japan. New information has been exposed that should be reported immediately."

"Proceed." The voice uttered, slowly fading away into nothingness.

After what seemed like hours of waiting but was in actuality only five minutes, a scratching noise, similar to that of nails being dragged across a chalkboard, filled the room and reached the Motoki's ears. With a slight wince being the only outward sign of the discomfort the noise caused, the blonde took a deep breath before straightening and looking straight back at the monitor. Almost instantly a blurry image, completely indistinguishable except for a slight bluish-gray color coming from what he knew to be the man's eyes, appeared at once on the screen.

"Good to hear from you again, soldier. We were hoping to hear from you soon. What new information do you have?" The answerer of the call sounded like an easy-going and laid back man. Motoki knew better than to assume that.

No, the man was not laid back or easy-going; he was _the _Commander of the entire operation. He was easily one of the toughest and strongest men Motoki had ever come across. In the barracks, many rumors circulated about just how powerful of an opponent their Commander was. One of those rumors was that he was so formidable that no one had ever faced him in combat and defeated him. No one expect their King, that is.

"I have new information concerning my position in Tokyo, Japan, sir." Motoki finally responded.

"Well, get on with it. There's no point in delaying."

"Well, sir, before I say anything, I would like to request that all the closest available personal relocate at once to Tokyo and take up residence. I have a feeling that I am going to need as many men as I can get. And soon."

"And why, pray tell, would I do something like that? What is so important that you need all available men to come to Tokyo? You should be more than capable of handling any and all problems that arise. That's why you were chosen for this job. Need I remind you?" The man asked, his voice now filled with humor instead of being the former monotone that he had slipped into after his first message.

"We've found him, Commander." Was the simple answer the now grave-faced Motoki uttered, "He's here. In Tokyo."

Deadly silence and a now blank computer screen was all that answered the apprehensive arcade employee.

* * *

Chapter two done and delivered! I'd like to thank the two who reviewed my story; it gave me the courage I needed to post another chapter.

And in answer to **ffgirlmoonie's **question: No, Tuxedo Mask does not know who Sailor Moon or the rest of the scouts are in civilian form. The same goes for the scouts not knowing who Tuxedo Mask is in civilian form. I'm sorry if there was any confusion.

Thank you again for all those that read and reviewed my story, it means a great deal to me.

REVISION EDIT:

_Summary of events_

- Eight months ago (Late February) Serena became a Senshi

- Seven months ago (March) Ami became one

- Three and a half months ago (Mid-June) Rei did.

- Two months ago (August --about a few weeks after school began) Makoto did

- Two weeks ago (Mid-October) Minako did

- Serena met Darien the day after she became Moon and known him since.

- Darien displayed 'Genius-like' qualities that caused Motoki to look at him incredulously.

- Motoki went to the back room and accessed a secret room.

- He calls "Commander" and says "He's here. In Tokyo." The Commander hangs up on him.

_Tiger Celeste_


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

Note: I just want to say that this is my first fanfic story. I would greatly appreciate reviews and constructive criticism. Please NO flames. Despite popular belief there is a difference between the two and flames can be very hurtful things. Just thought I should point that out.

_Revision Post Date: 5/26/09 Edited descriptions for better flow; edited last scene; fixed minor spelling errors; added summary of events._

_Original Post Date: 2/22/07_

* * *

The Crown Arcade was bustling with noise and excitement as a young woman elegantly strode through the sliding doors. Immediately upon her entrance, the fan that hung above the doors caused her golden hair to fly wildly, the strands threatening to break free from the red ribbon that held half of them in place. With a sigh, she smoothed down her knee-length, tapered peach skirt and adjusted her billowing white blouse as she glanced around, catching sight of all the younger children having fun with their friends. Her eyes unknowingly softened at the sight of such innocent merriment as she thought of her own friends and the mischief they used to cause.

Oh, how she missed her dear friends. Their duty was a constant one that didn't ensure they were always around one another, but there had still been those stolen moments where they would play tricks and have their laughs. Longingly, she wished they could all be together again but she wasn't foolish enough to believe it was a possibility for the time being; especially with everyone in the state they were in now. _'No. Now is not the time to dwell on such depressing thoughts. We will be together soon enough.'_ She nodded to herself, her eyes hardening over once more, _'Now is the time for business.'_

Turning her attention away from a group of middle-school girls laughing, her cornflower-blue eyes sought the counter and instantly spotted the man she wanted to speak with. She froze in her tracks, however, the second she noticed the dark-haired man _he _was speaking with. _'It's true. He's really here in Tokyo.' _She thought in amazement, _'All this time looking for him and he was right under our noses. Or, more specifically, __**Motoki's **__nose but he was still here all long…'_

She forcibly shook herself out of her surprise and resumed the walk to the counter, her black high-heel boots clacking against the floor with every step. Luckily there was an empty stool a few feet away from where the two men were conversing, so she quickly sat on it before anyone else could. She pulled the strap of her small, black purse off her shoulder and spun the stool around to observe the arcade as she waited for the blonde man to finish conversing and take her order. _'I can see why Motoki chose this location as a cover.' _She thought, impressed, as her eyes darted from one customer to another, _'All varieties of teenagers and young adults… No doubt a great majority spend plenty of time here. It gives an ample opportunity to identify the others in civilian form.'_

"May I get you anything, miss?" A familiar voice asked a few moments later, knocking her out of her thoughts and observations.

"A hot raspberry tea, please." She answered without turning around. She cast a quick glance out of the corner of her left eye and discovered the dark-haired man to be engrossed in a textbook. She couldn't help but roll her eyes at the familiarity of the action. _'Well, he certainly hasn't changed. Always eager to learn and study.'_

"One hot raspberry tea coming right up." Motoki responded, walking away and whistling an off-key tune that caused the golden-haired woman to flinch. _'And it seems as if he hasn't changed either.' _An amused smile played on her lips. _'Always tone-deaf to any form of music.'_

A few minutes later, a "Here you are, miss." sounded behind her, followed by the clink of a saucer being placed on the counter. There was a pause of silence before Motoki spoke again. "Would you like anything else with your tea? We have a variety of pasties that taste very good, if I say so myself. They just came out of the oven not long ago, either."

"No, that's quite alright. The tea is just fine. Thank you." She answered politely, still not turning around to address him face to face yet. She glanced at the dark-haired man once more, not at all surprised when she saw him watching her curiously. _'Always the silent observer, aren't you? It is good to know you hardly changed. She would not have liked you to.'_

Motoki's eyebrows rose at the woman's strangeness before shrugging. "Alright then. My name's Motoki, by the way, so if you need anything else just give me a holler and I'll be right with you." He hesitated for a second before shaking his head and heading back to his friend.

Once she was sure he was a decent distance way, the woman slowly turned around. She paused to gently wave a hand over her drink before finally speaking. As she did, Motoki instantly froze in his tracks. "What? No hello for your sister, dear brother? Surely you haven't forgotten _me _in all this time?"

The expression of absolute shock quickly melted from the blonde's face as he looked over his shoulder. Making sure his eyes were set in an ice cold glare and an emotionless mask was firmly planted on his face, he answered the woman who was staring at him with a sweet smile. "Áine.(1) What the _hell _do you think you are doing here?"

* * *

'_There's something familiar about that woman.' _Darien decided, _'I'm positive I've seen her somewhere before.'_ He had been studying the golden-haired woman on and off since the moment she had first sat down not far from where he and Motoki were conversing. Yet, despite that being almost ten minutes ago, he still hadn't been able to figure out what was so familiar about her; he just knew he had seen her previously. _'But _where_? Maybe from school? Or even the park?'_

Just then a loud laser blast sounded from one of the many video games across the room. More specifically, from the Sailor V game Odango constantly played. _'That's where I've seen her!' _He realized with a start, _'She's that model that used to do the Sailor V promotions and posed for all the games. Serena talked about her constantly when she suddenly picked up and left England. I guess this is where she disappeared to.'_

Triumphant from his identification, he looked up from where he'd been blindly staring at his textbook only to blink. To his surprise, he saw Motoki talking heatedly with the woman. Furrowing his brow, he wondered what could have caused his friend to become so angry. _'Is she not paying her bill or something? No. Motoki never gets angry over anything like that. Come to think if it, I've hardly ever seen him seriously angry.' _As the two of them continued to argue, his curiosity got the better of him. Subtly looking around to make sure no one was watching him, he leaned forward slightly and strained his ears to catch what they were discussing.

"…none of your business!" Motoki whispered furiously, leaning down slightly.

The Sailor V model's retort was just as quiet. "It _is _my business! He……my home!"

"Where was that………you were……?"

"I was……everyone!"

"Don't lie to me!"

"_Lie? _Everything I've……and…is the truth!"

The blonde man let out a harsh laugh, startling Darien. "Oh really? Then why…… and……it?"

"I……my duty!"

"You've abandoned …… before…… you won't do it again?"

"I did not abandon anyone!" She shouted furiously, standing to her full height and glaring at the man before her. Many customers were surprised at her sudden outburst, including Darien, and stared curiously at both her and Motoki until the latter sheepishly waved toward everyone with an obviously forced smile.

"Leave." The blonde stated coldly as he glanced back at his sister impassively. When she tried to speak with him once more, he gave her an icy glare that told her just how much he wanted to listen. With a frustrated sigh, she dug some money out of her purse and threw it onto the counter. She shoved the black strap on her shoulder and, after a quick glance in Darien's direction, walked away without a second look back.

'_What in the world?' _Darien fought not to gape in a stunned surprise as he glanced between the retreating woman and his friend, who was currently glaring daggers at the stool she had been sitting on. _'What was all _that _about? I've never seen Motoki like that before.'_

Blinking his eyes furiously to get them back into focus, Motoki glanced up to watch Áine stalk through the doors and out of sight. He rubbed his hands over his face with a tired sigh, leaning against the counter. _'Damn that woman. I can't believe she would do this to everyone. It's bad enough that she knows where the Senshi are and is already fighting alongside them, now she knows where _he _is as well. Who knows what she intends to do with all this information.'_

Spotting the tea his sister had neglected, he picked it up and turned to toss it into the sink. As the burgundy liquid flowed down the drain, he felt the unmistakable shiver that came when someone was watching him intently. Turning slightly, he spotted Darien starting at him in bewilderment with a creased brow --more than likely wondering what he and Áine had been arguing about.

'_I guess it's a good thing you don't remember anything yet, Darien. Otherwise my cover would have been blown while I tried to prevent you and Áine from fighting.'_ As the blonde walked back toward his friend, a stray thought crossed his mind that drew a trouble frown onto his face. _'Who in the world told her that I had found him, anyways? I just contacted Headquarters and Commander _yesterday_, she couldn't have found out until someone there had told her. But, then, __**who **__did?'_

"--toki. _Motoki_!" Said man jumped in surprise, starting out of his disturbing thoughts abruptly. He looked up to find himself in front of Darien, the man's hand waving in his face. "You okay?" The dark-haired man asked, frowning in concern as he brought his hand back down from its airborne position, "You seem really worried about something."

"I'm fine. Just thought of something I had to do, nothing to worry about." He replied easily as he walked around the counter and sat next to his friend.

"If you say so." Darien responded with a shrug, eyeing the blonde for a moment longer, before beginning to gather his scattered belongings. Confused, Motoki asked him why he was leaving so early. "It's almost ten-thirty." The other man pointed out as he gestured toward the clock handing over the neon _'Crown Arcade'_ sign. "And I'd personally like to get some sleep tonight."

"…Huh? When did it get so late?" Motoki rubbed the back of his head in confusion, turning around to look at the arcade. Only a few stragglers remained in the establishment, all of them looking like they'd leave any minute. "There's only fifteen minutes left until closing!" He exclaimed in shock, his eyes fixed on the clock.

Darien shook his head as he hefted up his side pack and began filling it with a few books. "You spent almost half an hour talking with that woman." He reminded his friend, "Then you were just staring at her stool listlessly for another ten minutes after she left. …Who was she anyways?"

"A ghost from the past." Motoki answered faintly as he watched the remaining crowd walk out of the arcade, one or two of them waving back at him. He got out and stretched his arms before clapping his friend on the back, telling him he'd see him tomorrow. Without another word he disappeared into the back, leaving behind a bewildered Darien gazing at his retreating form. A few moments later, the bell above the door echoed loudly in the silence as the last customer left for the day.

* * *

A thick mist was slowly moving into view as a young man clad in gleaming armor awoke to find himself leaning against a large and aged tree trunk. Even without looking around, he instantly knew where he was: in the gigantic courtyard of the strange white castle that constantly filled his dreams. With a weary groan, Darien rested his head against the tree heavily and closed his eyes for a few moments to think. _'When am I ever going to get a good night's sleep without this dream plaguing me?' _He asked himself in despair.

The dreams had started appearing only a month after his first battle as the mysterious Tuxedo Mask and every night since then, they would constantly haunt his every sleeping thought. He hadn't always loathed falling asleep every night, however; at first the dreams had greatly intrigued him. A princess asking him --ordinary college student Darien Shields, albeit a guy that had the unexplainable ability to transform into a superhero of sorts-- to find something called the Silver Imperial Crystal and free her; it was inconceivable. Even with his strange powers that controlled flora and his abilities as Tuxedo Mask, he was nowhere near qualified for such a task. The job would better be suited for a soldier in her kingdom or even a personal guard. No matter the circumstances surrounding her imprisonment, there should be someone much more capable of rescuing her and retrieving an obviously powerful item. Yet, he still felt honored by the request and promised the princess, and himself, that he would do all that he could to help free her. As the months passed though, it became apparent that he was going to regret making such a promise.

One reason he came to regret it was because the princess wasn't volunteering any information about her predicament. She even all but outright refused to give him her name. _'Which, you have to admit, if highly suspicious.'_ Darien thought to himself with a frown, _'If you're asking to be released from sort of imprisonment, then why wouldn't you offer your name?'_ After months of searching and dreams, he was still left with the same information he'd had all along: the princess was imprisoned or trapped somewhere, and an item called the "Silver Imperial Crystal" could somehow free her.

He also knew that she believed him to be a prince --more specifically, _her _prince. Whether he was of actual royal birth was still a mystery, but he did know that he was a soldier of some sort. At least if the silver and blue armor he was wearing meant anything, not to mention the large and rather deadly-looking sword strapped to his side. The princess --if she actually _was _one, now that he thought about it-- hadn't revealed how she knew him or what she thought their relationship was either, in all this time. _'For all I know,'_ He thought suddenly, _'these dreams could be some sort of Dark Kingdom ploy to get me to help them instead of the Sailor Senshi.'_ He groaned soundlessly, feeling a headache coming on. He was in a complete perplexity about what to do. This wasn't the first time he wondered whether the constant worrying over the princess and her predicament was worth it --or if it was even real in the first place.

"My Prince, are you there?" A musical voice called out through the fog. Slowly peeking open one eye, he decided it would be best to go through the nightly ritual and be done with it as fast as possible; hopefully he'd get some real, dreamless sleep afterwards. He got to his feet unhurriedly, lifting his arms about his head with minimum noise --which was surprising considering the amount of heavy metal armor he wore-- and stretch with a large yawn. With a dragged out sigh, he then started to walk the way over to his usual spot.

"My Prince?" The voice, now filled with slight uncertainty, floated down to where he was just walking up the small, worn out path that crossed under a pearling white balcony.

"I am here, Princess." He called out reluctantly. With a few more steps, the raven-haired man found himself standing almost directly under that large balcony he knew the princess regally waited upon. Craning his head up to see as far as he could, he waited for her to emerge.

Within moments her petite silhouette appeared and he was once again frustrated at the fog that constantly covered her from view. That was another reason he came to regret his promise: he had _never _been able to see her in all these months. If he was supposed to free her, wouldn't it be helpful to know what she _looked _like? The most he had seen through the mist was that she seemingly always wore a white dress that had some type of design --sequins, possibly-- that glowed when the light struck her form. She also had incredibly long hair that floated down to the floor but, of course, it was an indecipherable color.

"There you are, my prince. I was dreadfully worried that something had transpired and hindered your arrival this evening when you did not respond. I am so very glad you are alright." She replied as she stepped as closed as she dare to the edge of the balcony.

"No, Princess. I am only tired. Forgive me if I worried you." He responded simply as he leaned against the glistening castle and stared out into the now-hidden courtyard from which he came. _'Well, this is new, isn't it? She is actually inquiring about my welfare.'_ He thought half-amazed, half-disbelieving, _'She usually just asks me about my search for the crystal and then pleads with me to find it when I say that I've had no luck.'_

"Have you had any good fortune in your quest for the Silver Imperial Crystal thus far, my prince?" The woman questioned quietly after a few moments of thoughtful silence on her part.

'_Spoke too soon.'_ He shook his head. "No, Your Highness. I have not had any good luck. If you recall, I do not have much information to proceed on. I do not even have such knowledge as to what your name is." He tried but failed miserably at hiding the bitterness and frustration in his voice. _'It doesn't matter if I'm polite or not anymore.' _He decided with narrowing eyes, _'I've spent these last few months requesting information and being as polite as I could possibly, yet it hasn't helped the matter any.'_

"My prince, please, you must find the crystal and free me. There is not much time remaining for you do so." She pleaded, easily ignoring the man's obvious displeasure. If was not her fault if he had now come to regret his promise of assistance. Fortunately, she knew he would hold himself to his word and help her find the crystal and that was all she needed. No matter how she loathed him and preferred to do without his help, it was needed deeply.

Behind the cover of the thick mist that surrounded the castle and the petite woman, an obvious sign of distaste securely formed itself on her face. _'I will never comprehend why Serenity grew so fond of this man, let alone love him as fervently as she did. It simply solidifies how much of a disappointment she truly was. Both of them were horrid people that did not deserve the lives the Gods had graciously granted them.'_ She thought to herself, revolted, before abruptly being pulled from her musings as the man below began speaking once again.

"I am sorry, Your Highness, but I have not made any progress in either my search or of how to free you. As I have told you previously, I've looked anywhere there has been even the slightest hint of a rare or unusual crystal being located. As you well know, I have come up empty-handed every time. I have even went so far as to look in all the local jewelry shops; I am sorry to say that it seems the Silver Imperial Crystal is not located in Tokyo." He replied, this time his annoyance masked completely.

"On the contrary, I have felt its presence on more than one occasion. You must not be searching in the correct places." She paused slightly before beginning to walk around the balcony slowly, her voice gaining the tone of a reprimand as she continued. "You seem to not understand the severity of this assignment, my dear prince. There is not enough time remaining for you to _not _take this seriously. It is imperative that the crystal is found before it falls into the wrong hands."

"I understand the seriousness of this request, Your Highness. What I do not understand is that if there is not much time left to find the crystal and free you, then why will you not give me any helpful information? You say that you have felt the crystal more than once, if so then _why _haven't you told me _where _you've felt it? Give me something as petty as your name or a description of yourself in the very least!" He nearly yelled the words as he straightened out from his leaning position and back away to look up to where he believed the princess's face was hidden. Frustrated and furious, he continued with his tirade and in the back of his mind he knew that if she didn't listen to him, he would be putting an end to everything that night. "If nothing else, find someone else who is more capable of rescuing you! I am a simple person, Princess, I am not someone that should have to release you from your imprisonment or whatever it happens to be!"

He stopped, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. As he continued, he was much calmer. "No matter what you may believe, I am not your lapdog, Your Highness. I am my own person and I do not hold any obligation to you that demands I serve your every whim. I am deeply sorry for your dilemma but I cannot help you if you will not assist me in my search." Finally finished, he promptly leaned against the castle's wall again and stared out into the haze that covered everything from inquisitive eyes.

'_Such insolence!' _The woman thought irately, _'That horrible terror of a man! He is incredibly fortunate that he is essential to finding the crystal otherwise he would not be breathing any longer. He is even privileged to be living now, considering the circumstances surrounding our last encounter. Nonetheless, when everything is accomplished, he will be the first to go.' _"Perhaps you are speaking the truth." She started evenly, causing Darien to look up from his position several feet below. His eyes met the bottom of the fog-covered balcony. "It is highly unfair to you, not to mention impractical to your search, that I am unwilling to provide you with the information you seek. However, as you did not know, I am not permitted to offer you such knowledge. It is something that you must discover on your own and for that I am sorry for your frustration."

His eyes narrowed. "Then how do you suspect me to be capable of discovering the crystal's location? It is impossible to find something when you know nothing of it." He stated with forcefulness.

"While I am not allowed to inform you of the crystal's present whereabouts, perhaps if I can tell you of its history, it would give you some insight on what you are searching for. Would that be favorable to you and your quest, my prince?" Her inquire was perfectly polite again, all traces of distaste wiped from her voice and person.

His eyes narrowed further as he wondered why he hadn't told him such a story from the start. "Yes. It would be beneficial to know what I am looking for. All I know of the crystal is that it is called the Silver Imperial Crystal and has the power to release you from your imprisonment."

"Very well." She responded without hesitation, "I shall proceed to tell you the history of the Silver Imperial Crystal." _'Well then, let's see how you enjoy my edited version of history, dear prince.'_ She thought spitefully, _'You not remembering the truth is such a useful occurrence. You can be manipulated on countless degrees.'_ "Unfortunately, I cannot convey to you all the crystal's history for it is a long one. Yet, what I will tell you is the predominant information." She stated evenly and, once she received an affirmative, she quietly began her story.

"Eons ago, when the great Gods and Goddesses ruled, the universe was in what everyone believed to be eternal peace. At that time in history, all planets --from the desolate terrain of Pluto to the blazing infernos of the Sun-- were inhabited by life. The most powerful of these great people were the Lunarians; those whom lived on the Earth's Moon. They had incredible power but were a gentle and peaceful nation.

"That glorious universal peace lasted until a great war broke out between an evil entity and the very first Queen of the Moon; a direct descendant of the Moon's patron goddess Selene. The Queen managed to destroy the evil entity but with her victory came a terrible cost. After the battle, the Moon was left in a state of disarray. Ancient temples and buildings had been destroyed, crops ruined; overall the planet was in shambles. The Queen was at a lost of what to do, that is until the goddess granted her a blessing.

"Selene had been distraught when she saw the state her beloved people had been left in and was determined to see them healed. To do this, she took a beautiful silver flower from her favorite garden in the heavens, passing onto it a small portion of her power. Through her magic and the celestial flower, the goddess had managed to create the Silver Imperial Crystal --a great power that the Lunarian royal family would then use for millennia afterwards. Despite the crystal only possessing a fraction of Selene's magic, it was still incredibly powerful. Whole civilizations could be destroyed if the wielder chose to do so. Yet, the crystal also had the wondrous power to heal.

"Due to the goddess's gift, the first Moon Queen was able to restore the whole planet to its former glory and a beautiful temple was erected in honor and remembrance of the generous blessing bestowed upon her and her people. Yet, the former glory was soon not enough as the Queen realized how effortlessly the evil entity had broken through the Moon's defenses. She quickly set out to make the universe a more secure, peaceful place for everyone who inhabited it. Even when she passed on and her successor took over the planet, her desire for a peaceful life lived on. All rulers of the Moon Kingdom --Lunaria-- upheld the first Queen's desire and eventually a pact was made between all planets that joined them in a great alliance simply known as the Silver Alliance. The current Queen of the Moon would always be a the helm, a testament to how the Lunarian rulers were renowned for their fairness and great power.

"Peace reigned throughout the centuries until a cursed child was born. She would be the sole reason for the Silver Alliance's destruction. Everyone around her was fooled by her childish innocence and she eagerly used that to her advantage, becoming a disaster to the universe during her life. She managed to deceive the entire Silver Alliance into believing she was an innocent bystander in all her schemes. One of her greatest conspiracies was managing to steal the Silver Imperial Crystal from where it was housed on the Moon. Her most horrendous felony, however, was managing to imprison myself, the Lunarian Princess and heiress." She declared as she finally came to a stop from her constant pacing around the pearling balcony.

Darien was silent for a long moment after the woman finished her narrative. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't seem to wrap his mind around the story. He didn't understand why but it seemed as if something about it was _off_. The tale itself was incredibly familiar --almost as if he'd heard it somewhere long ago-- yet something within it didn't add up, as if a few _significant _facts had been changed. Somehow he _knew _that this "cursed" child wasn't the villain she had been portrayed to be.

"I am sorry for your loss, Your Highness. Even before revealing your identity, it was easy to see that you experienced firsthand the latter events of your story. Yet I still do not comprehend why I was the one requested to retrieve the crystal and free you. This seems like a personal matter to me, for nowhere within that story was I spoken of." He stated firmly, "I refuse to settle a personal score of yours, especially when I believe that you are not telling me the complete truth. As I have said, I am not your lapdog, Your Highness. I hold no obligation to you."

"You do not understand, my prince. It is _imperative _that this cursed child does not gain the crystal once more. She could do much more horrid actions with it than what she did beforehand. She may very well destroy this whole world with a single wish if she so desires. You must find the Silver Imperial Crystal and _free me_." The woman pleaded once more, fighting to keep the hatred out of her voice. _'That fool! He lacks his memories, so how is it he has suspicions? He should not suspect I was lying!'_

Darien's glared, infuriated. _'Does she not understand that I will not settle this personal score of hers? I refuse to be ordered around as if I was one of her puppets. For all I know this "cursed child" was in the right when she imprisoned this "Lunarian princess and heir".' _"Tell me, Your Highness, if you were foolish enough to become imprisoned by this _cursed _child the first time, what makes me certain you would not repeat that mistake?" He inquired scathingly as he walked away from the wall he'd been leaning on, "What would be the use of myself searching for the Silver Imperial Crystal, finding it, managing to free you, all for you to become trapped again?"

"_You presumptuous fool!" _She uttered furiously, "How _dare _you speak to me in such a manner and assume that I would become imprisoned by that beastly child once more. As soon as I am released, that girl shall receive what she has always deserved!"

"If I am such a fool, then you shall have to locate someone else to do your bidding. I revoke my promise of assistance, Your Highness." He retorted simply as he continued to walk away from the balcony.

"Then you leave me no choice, my _prince_." The infuriated woman replied enigmatically as she watched him haughtily stalk away from her. She regarded the scenery indifferently as Darien disappeared through the mist that encompassed him soon after. Once she was sure he had returned to the waking world, she leisurely strode back into her bedroom. As she closed the curtains around the balcony door, she cast a cursory glance to where the man had disappeared.

"After all, why would I allow the man that killed me to live any longer than necessary?" The whispered message fell upon death ears as the curtains silently fell into place.

* * *

_**Note:**_ I want to point this out before I forget: The princess _never _offered to tell Darien who he truly was. He just decided to help her because he felt sorry for her and was honored that she had asked him for help in the first place. Besides, he was just overall curious as to what happened to her.

1. In Irish mythology, Áine (AWN-ya) is the goddess of love, growth and cattle. She is also associated with light and the sun. If the theory is correct, she is in fact the personification of "radiant light". Also, in county Limerick, she is remembered in more recent times as a fairy queen.

Now I don't know about all of you, but when I read that description, I automatically thought of Minako. Especially considering the heritage/background she has in this story. Love and light --her main attacks, right? And she always has a sparkling a bright nature, something I'd consider the personification of "radiant light" as having. And, well, you'll find out the rest of the reasons I thought that fit so well later on. :)

I wanted to make Venus something more than just Aphrodite or something to that effect. So, I spent countless hours before I started writing, way back in November or so when I got the original idea for this story, and looked up love and light goddess (not to mention every god/dess in this story and I'm still not done). Áine was the one I decided fit the best. Besides, I thought it was pretty original. I mean, have you ever heard of Minako being anything but Aphrodite's reincarnation, daughter, etc.? I had never ever _heard _the name Áine before! I like it. :) I went outside the box of all those Roman and Greek gods.

So, this actually wasn't the original version of the story. That got pushed back and I wrote this instead but, I must say that I like this chapter way better. I get to add more juicy details and mysteries! Dun dun dun! I bet you can't guess what's going through my mind in regards for this story. Just who is that mysterious woman from the balcony and what is Minako (Áine) doing? God, I love how I ended this story. I couldn't resist that line! Well, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Please review!

REVISION EDIT:

_Summary of events_

- Minako visits Motoki at the arcade, audience learns her Silver Millennium name is Áine and she and Motoki are siblings.

- The two get into an argument that ends with Motoki ordering her out of the arcade. She glances at Darien pointedly just before leaving.

- Motoki realizes that she shouldn't have known "he" had been found; wonders who at HQ could have told her.

- A month after his first youma battle, Darien began having nightly dreams about a princess pleading him to find the "Silver Imperial Crystal" and freeing her from an "imprisonment". He'd agreed to help, yet is frustrated that she refuses to give him any information --including her name.

- In the cover of the mist, the "princess" wonders how Serenity had loved and cared for Darien as much as she had --revealing to the audience she _isn't _who she says she is.

- In frustration, Darien finally snaps and in turn the "princess" reveals she isn't _allowed _to tell him anything.

- Unknown to him, she tells him an "edited version of history"; mentions how a "cursed child" was the one to destroy the Silver Alliance and fool everyone one into believing she was innocent. Greatest acts -- stealing the Silver Imperial Crystal and imprisoning her --the Lunarian Princess.

- Darien can't accept the story as true. Wonders if maybe the "cursed child" was right by her actions. He asks why _he _had been asked to help, when he wasn't mentioned in the story.

- "Princess" insults him and he takes back his promise and walks away.

- As he disappears, she whispers, "After all, why would I allow the man that killed me to live any longer than necessary?"

_Tiger Celeste_


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

Note: I just want to say that this is my first fanfic story. I would greatly appreciate reviews and constructive criticism. Please NO flames. Despite popular belief there is a difference between the two and flames can be very hurtful things. Just thought I should point that out.

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The sun was already high in the sky by the time Darien awoke. Casting bleary eyes around his tidy bedroom, Darien sought and found his small black digital alarm clock on his nightstand next to his bed. After blinking his eyes a few times to bring them into focus, the blaring red numbers of 11:07 a.m. stared back at Darien unwavering. Disbelieving eyes stared at the clock strangely for a few moments until Darien realized that he had actually overslept. _'Good thing today is a Sunday. I still don't have to start working until three this afternoon.' _he thought relieved as he flopped back down in his bed and rested for a few more minutes.

It was not often that Darien allowed himself the privilege of sleeping in. Usually he had an iron-clad will that would not permit him to sleep longer than necessary in fear he would become late for anything. After last night's ordeal however, he guessed that his body decided that it would get the sleep it desperately craved- even if the chance of becoming late was possible. At the very least he was glad that his body finally took some incentive and got himself some sleep. He knew that coffee wouldn't of solved his sleep deprivation today.

'_I'm just glad that I finally spoke my mind to that damned princess. She was getting too aggravating.' _he thought to himself with a yawn. _'Let's just hope she doesn't appear in my dreams tonight though. I already feel so free knowing that I don't have to worry about the princess and where the Silver Imperial Crystal might be anymore. Of course I'm still curious about this Silver Crystal, I might look for it myself to learn more about it. '_

Suppressing another yawn, Darien swung his legs over the side of the bed and proceeded to wipe the sleep from his eyes before standing up to stretch. Slowly making his way to the bathroom, Darien proceeded to go through his morning routine- minus his daily jog around the park since it was so late into the day.

Almost forty five minutes later Darien was freshly showered, shaved, and on his way out of his towering apartment building. Deciding to get some lunch since he had missed breakfast, Darien headed toward a local café a few blocks away that sold good sandwiches. Almost half a block away from the café, the inevitable happened however.

As he was turning a corner, a flurry of blonde hair crashed into the tall man. With a great 'oof!' Darien had the breath knocked out of him as he crashed to the ground with the mass of blonde hair and limbs sprawled out on his stomach. Rubbing the back of his head, where he was sure a lump would form any minute now, he looked down at the girl still laying prone on his stomach.

"Hey Odango, do you mind moving anytime soon? I know I'm irresistible but this is a little too much for me." Darien said absentmindedly as he tried to untangle himself from the blonde's massive amount of hair. Pulling sharply at a piece of blonde hair caught in his watch, a muffled "ouch" could be heard from the middle of Darien's stomach.

"I heard that you jerk-wad! You are _not _irresistible!" Serena suddenly shouted out as she jumped to her feet. Beet-red in the face, whether from anger or embarrassment Darien wasn't sure, Serena gaped angrily at him.

"Don't lie Odango. You know you love me and my 'oh-so-dreamy stormy ocean-blue eyes'" he finished out with a bad imitation of Serena's higher pitch voice.

Staring at him while trying to decide if he was seriously or not, Serena decided that he was indeed very serious. Laughter bubbled through her throat and out of her mouth as she began to laugh at the confused man before her.

"I…I….c-can't….be-believe…" she tried to respond, but one more look at the man still sitting down on the ground staring at her strangely, she bust into another round of laughter.

"What's so funny Odango?" questioned Darien as he picked himself up and started to dust his clothing off. When Serena didn't respond for a few minutes he looked up to see that she was failing miserably at trying to stop her laughing. Her face was now loosing its red coloring but her eyes were starting to water while laughter escaped through her mouth every time she talked.

"Come on Odango, out with it. What's so funny?" he demanded with a perplexed frown.

"Th-that you…t-think you're so-so irresistible." Serena replied as she wiped away her tears of mirth before taking a deep breath to calm herself down. _'I can't believe him. Then again, more than half the female population in Japan thinks he's dreamy and they always mention how cute his eyes are.' _she thought with a roll of her eyes.

"Really, then why--" Darien began as he looked away from the stain that had formed on his favorite green jacket from the collision. Looking into Serena's amused eyes he saw she was still laughing on the inside.

"SERENA!!" came a sudden screech that startled both man and woman into silence. They both watched warily as Rei came running up to both of them with a furious scowl on her face. "Just what do you think you're doing? We're supposed to be _leaving_! _Not _hanging around with Darien _laughing_!"

"Oh yeah. Sorry about that Rei, I just got a little preoccupied with this jerk here." she said sheepishly as she pointed accusingly to the man that was trying to avoid Rei's lovesick eyes that had turned to him when she finally took notice of his presence.

After a few blinks of her eyes in a flirtatious manner in Darien's direction, Rei's fierce scowl returned and she cast her infuriated eyes on the blonde. "Then hurry up. If we don't leave right this---"

A loud beeping sound suddenly cut off Rei's speech and both girls cast nervous eyes in the direction of their pockets before looking at Darien curiously to see if he noticed their odd behavior.

Unfortunately, Darien was looking at both of the girls with hooded eyes so it was impossible to see what he was thinking. "Umm, Darien. We really need to, um, leave- like now. So, um, bye!" Rei said preoccupied as she grabbed Serena's wrist tightly and roughly dragged the girl down the street with her, all the while ignoring Serena's protests that Rei was bruising her wrist.

'_And just what was that about? I'm used to strange behavior from Odango, but not even she is that weird. And what was that beeping sound, it didn't sound like any pager I've heard. Yet at the same time I know I've heard it before._' Darien thought to himself before continuing to the café for his sandwich. _'Oh well, I'll worry about it later.'_

Not even fifteen minutes later Darien was seating himself into a small table in the back of the café to eat his sandwich and finish his soda he had ordered. He was only five and a half bites into his sandwich however when an excruciating headache caught him off guard. His sandwich dropped onto his plate with a plop as he bent over in his chair holding onto his head that felt as if it was being split apart with a sledge hammer. _'Oh god. Not again. I need to get out of here so I can transform.' _

Without a thought to the strange looks he knew he would receive, Darien rushed out of the door half-bent while holding onto his head with his left hand. Stumbling his way across the street into a darkened alley, he hurriedly flicked his wrist to produce his gold and blue transformation rose.

Instantly his body was incased in his velvet and silk cape before it fluttered out revealing a formal tuxedo adorning his body and a white domino mask covering the upper portion of his face. Shaking his head to ward off the lingering pain from his excruciating headache, Darien- or rather Tuxedo Mask- took a deep calming breath. _'Okay. Now where are Sailor Moon and the others?'_

Closing his eyes in concentration, he reached out with his psyche and pulled at the invisible link that connected him and Sailor Moon together. With a mental tug, the feelings of exhilaration, fear, and overall determination encompassed his body before a flash of silver light led him in the direction of the ocean. '_There! Head south of here to the Junichi Wharves.'_

"Oh Honey! You need to look at these gorgeous earrings I saw yesterday! You know my birthday is only in _two months_. Wouldn't those earring look so darling on me?" came a young woman's breathless voice as she dragged a slightly older man toward a jewelry shop's window display. After they walked past the alley, Tuxedo Mask emerged from his hiding place behind a few trashcans.

'_Time for work.' _ he thought as he power jumped up the fire escapes on the side of one of the buildings. Within moments he was running across various rooftops toward his destination. _'Hold on Sailor Moon. I'm be there in just a few minutes.'_

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"Mercury! Have you found the youma's weakness yet?!" shouted Sailor Jupiter as she yet again dodged the arm the youma shot in her direction. When the arm missed its target it was pulled back into its normal size against the youma's body.

With a murderous scowl on her face, Jupiter aimed her _'Echoing Thunder Thorns!' _at the annoyed youma who had crossed her hands against her blue and green fish-scale covered chest with a pout when she had missed. With a forceful battle cry the youma called upon one of her creatures to take the blunt of the attack. Jupiter's lightning charged airwaves hit the creature dead center and in a scream of agony it was no more than a pile of ash.

"Sorry Jupiter! I'm still working on it!" yelled Mercury without looking up from her Mercury mini-computer. '_Where is that weak spot?_' she thought frantically.

"Great." grumbled out Sailor Mars before calling out her _"Blazing Fireballs of Fury!"_ attack at the youma before her. With an infuriated scream the youma managed to dodge out of the way but not before getting her left calf burned.

"Owww! You'll pay for that you fire wielding freak!" the blue and green youma bellowed.

The Dark Kingdom's most recent youma was themed after a marine creature. It could almost be a mermaid but it walked on two legs instead of having a fin. The creature, who revealed itself to be named Maerina, was covered in blue and green fish scales and had two light gray fins for ears.

The only clothing she was wearing was a skimpy pink bikini swimming suit with starfish stuck on random places among her body. Even her turquoise colored neck length hair was covered in starfish. There was also bits of fishnet wrapped around her stomach going across her chest to wrap around shoulder before tying in something akin to a belt- similar to how a sash was worn.

The only two weapons she seemed to have so far were her arms that could be shot out into dangerous harpoons and her ability to call on half-fish half-human creatures that attacked the Sailor Senshi and acted as Maerina's shields.

"Stay in one place!" screeched out the youma before shooting out her left arm in Sailor Venus's position guarding the stationary Sailor Mercury that was frantically typing away at her mini-computer behind a few crates containing fish.

"Move out of the way!" suddenly shouted Sailor Moon as she threw her body into the arm harpoon's path so neither Sailor Venus or Sailor Mercury would get hurt by the dangerous weapon.

"SAILOR MOON!!" shouted the four remaining scouts simultaneously as they watched in alarm as the deadly harpoon came closer to Serena's body. Suddenly a black blur rushed toward Sailor Moon and she was swept away like the damsel in distress she was. With a relived sigh, Sailor Moon wrapped her arms securely around Tuxedo Mask's neck and leaned her head against his shoulder.

"Cutting it a little close there weren't you Sailor Moon?" he remarked casually as he landed safely behind a bunch of crates that were stacked high into the air to give them privacy.

"Yeah, but I had faith that you would save me in the nick of time as you always do. And once again I was right and you saved me just in time." she answered as she released herself from his grasp.

"One day I might not be there to save you, you know that right? You have to learn to take care of yourself better Sailor Moon." came the masked man's reply. "I know you can do it. _You _just have to believe that you can do it."

"I know." came her whispered reply. _'I know I have to do better. I always have to do better.' _she thought bitterly before releasing a tired sigh. _'He's right though. I can't always rely on him being there to whisk me to safety.' _

"Can you handle it by yourself now?" questioned Tuxedo Mask after watching her think for some time. _'I know she didn't want to hear that but it's important for her to try harder.'_

"Yup!" she said cheerily as she smiled at the man before her. "I'll be just fine. I just threw myself in the way because I have no attacks in battle until I can use my tiara. I felt useless."

"You're not useless. You're the one that destroys the youmas at the end every time, remember that. Come on, I'll take you closer to the others." he offered as he picked her up bridal style and jumped closer to where Jupiter was firing lightning at the three remaining half fish half human creatures. Coming to squat behind an old dinghy they both were silent as they held their breath hoping the lightning would finish off the creatures once and for all. Unfortunately only one of the creatures was destroyed before Maerina called the other two to her sides.

"I have it! I have her weakness!" suddenly cried Mercury triumphantly from her position still behind the crates. "Aim at the starfish above her left ear! The one that looks like a barrette holding back her hair!"

"I got it!" shouted Mars as she formed her flaming bow and an arrow out of thin air. Closing one eye to get a better view of the shot she fired the arrow with precision. With a self-satisfied smirk she watched as the arrow hit its mark dead center on the starfish in a flash of fire and smoke.

"Yes!" Sailor Mars shouted as she pumped her hand up and down in the air. "Victory! That was too easy!"

With a humorous and ironic smile on her face, Sailor Moon turned to the man squatting beside her. "What was that about me always being the one to destroy the youma, Tuxedo Mask?"

The masked man ignored her question in favor of analyzing the situation. Glancing toward the water he noticed that the waves were starting to crash against the docks, something that hardly ever happened since the docks were so high.

"Something's not right about all this." he finally said as he looked at the blonde haired woman beside him. "Sailor Mars is right, it _was _too easy."

"Easy? You weren't here when we arrived! That youma had already drained all those fisherman that me and Venus dragged behind that building over there. We had to contain her here before we could even begin to fight you know!"

"That's not it. Look at those waves over there." he replied as he pointed to the waves that continuously crashed into the docks. "I think Maerina's planning something bigger for the Dark Kingdom. She isn't just an energy collector."

"Then what was she doing? When we got here she was heading back from that dock down there, on the far side of the ocean. We just assumed that she was looking for more people to drain."

"I don't know what she is planning. Come on, lets take a look at the dock she was coming back from. Maybe we can find out what she was doing." said Tuxedo Mask as he grabbed a hold of Sailor Moon's wrist and pulled her behind the cover of crates. They both sprinted toward the dock hoping that no one would spotted them on their course.

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While Tuxedo Mask and Sailor Moon were conversing, the others -minus Mars who was still gloating over beating 'that pathetic youma'- were waiting in silence for the smoke to clear away from where the youma last stood. They knew you could never be too careful in these circumstances.

"Uhh… Mercury? Isn't it supposed to be dead now?" questioned Venus as she watched the smoke clear away from the youma revealing the woman standing proudly were she once was. She looked relatively unharmed except for the few major lacerations on her body and a chunk of her left shoulder missing.

"The attack must not have been strong enough! Try another attack!" reasoned Mercury before she called out her _'Veiling Bubbles!' _attack. Her icy fog then started to roll into the wharf and cover everything from view. All the senshi breathed a collective sigh of relief when they heard Maerina's confused shouts.

"Not strong enough!? That was my most powerful attack!" protested Mars as she stopped cheering long enough to realize that the youma had not been destroyed. "Why didn't my attack destroy her Mercury?"

"I don't know!" she yelled back exasperated. Pushing her left hand earring, the blue clad senshi's visor appeared before her eyes and she was able to analyze the youma's statistics while moving toward Sailor Venus.

"Venus!" she whispered into the fog. "Are you still here?"

"Yeah," the orange clad senshi answered back as she placed her hand on Mercury's left shoulder. "Do you have a new plan yet? Or have you figured out why the youma's weak spot didn't destroy the youma?"

"I'm working on both those right now. My visor informs me that Maerina's vital stats are at 73 percent. She will also not be able to shoot her left arm harpoon because she was hit so hard and more than likely her shoulder is dislocated." answered the blue-haired scout as she pressed a few hidden buttons on the sides of her visor.

"Got it. What about those gashes on her stomach and the one on her right thigh? Will they slow down her speed any or can we expose them as a new weakness?" inquired Venus as she tried to pear through the fog that still hadn't started to evaporate.

"The one of her thigh will cut down her speed by 35 percent. I can't get a good enough reading on the two gashes on her stomach however. I don't know how they will effect her performance."

"Let me handle that then." replied Venus with a wicked smirk. Jumping atop of a few crates to get a clear shot above the fog, Venus fired her "Explosive Hearts on Fire!" attack in the direction of Maerina's confused shouts.

"AHHH!!!" screamed Maerina as her body was hit with a handful on explosive golden hearts. A surge of golden light briefly filled the air and blew away the fog surrounding Maerina and her creatures before it disappeared just as quickly as it came.

"There. Does that help you any Mercury?" asked Venus as she jumped back down to her previous position on Mercury's left.

"It sure does and by the looks of these readings you caused 19 percent more damage to Maerina, Venus." came the pleased reply as Mercury continued to read the data flowing down her visor screen.

"All right then. Do you know how long we have left until all your fog dissipates?"

"Hold on…There! We have 108.9 seconds until the fog dissipates around everyone. In that time can you find the others? When I finish my plan I want everyone to be present."

"No problem Mercury, I'm on it." She then did a head over heels flip and landed feet down on a grate to peer for the others in the fog. Quickly spotting an angry Jupiter making her way toward Mercury, Venus intercepted her path by jumping down in front of her.

"Whoa! It's me- Venus!" she cried when a fist came into her field of vision. Ducking to the side, she was barely able to dodge the electricity charged punch. _'Well it's nice to see that she didn't change all that much over the years either.' _she thought to herself amused. _'Throw punches first, ask questions later.'_

"Oh! Sorry about that girl; you caught me off guard. I thought you were one of Maerina's creatures." said Jupiter apologetically as she reached out to squeeze Venus's shoulder.

"That's fine, it was my fault. I really should have expected that in this fog. You never know who will sneak up on you." came Venus's easy reply. "Come on, Mercury wants us all together when she finishes her plan. I still need to find Mars, Moon, and probably Tuxedo Mask too while I'm at it."

"All right Venus. Just point me in the right direction and I'll let you finish finding them." the green clad senshi said as she looked for any signs of the blue-haired genius in the mist.

"Actually you were going in the right direction. Maybe about 45 more paces and you would have gotten there. I just wanted to make sure that you didn't veer off path."

"That's _just _great. I thought I was headed toward Maerina all this time. I was worried that I was going to fall into the water at any minute now! Now I find out I was headed in the opposite direction the _whole _time!" she complained to Venus as she started walking toward the direction the golden-haired girl pointed out. "All right, I'll see you in a few minutes, girl. You'll probably find Tuxie and Sailor Moon together so you only really need to find two groups!"

"I know!" she called back while laughing to herself. "Make sure you don't punch Mercury while you're at it!"

"_Fierce Inferno Arrows!" _came a sudden shout from the orange-senshi's left. "So that's where Mars is!" the golden-haired girl murmured to herself.

Hoping that she wouldn't get caught in the crossfire, Venus unhooked her heart-linked chain from around her waist as she rushed toward Mar's fierce shouts. Coming to a break in the fog her blue eyes spotted Sailor Mars battling against one of Maerina's water creatures.

"Watch out Mars!" she warned when a harpoon arm came out of nowhere and headed in a straight path for Sailor Mar's upper body. With a great heave Venus threw her chain at the harpoon arm and, once she was sure she had a good hold on it, yanked it as hard as she could. With a shriek and a loud tearing sound, the arm came sailing toward the creature without restraint.

"I can handle it!" the infuriated fire senshi yelled back as she ducked to the ground and the harpoon went sailing through the creature standing before her. "I don't need your help! I did just fine without anyone's help."

To make her point, she indicated toward the pile of ashes that was now the water creature and to another pile only a few feet away that Venus hadn't noticed until then.

With an irritated glare on her face, Venus stalked closer to the fire senshi. "We are a team, you know. We are supposed to _help _and _support _each other. If you didn't need any help then why are you so tired? Or how did you manage to get that gash on your arm? Just accept my help without complaint, okay? Now come on. Mercury wants us all present when she delivers her plan and I still need to find Sailor Moon."

"Oh please." she grumbled as she took Venus's hand of assistance and pulled herself up. "That airhead probably hightailed it a long time ago."

Rolling her eyes at the scornful tone present in the senshi's voice, Venus let go of Mar's hand and urged her toward Mercury and Jupiter's voices that were slowly gaining volume.

"It looks like they'll meet you half way. I'll see you in a few Mars." With that the annoyed senshi took off running toward the edge of the water.

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Sorry for yet another long wait for this chapter. Also sorry if it seems short, it is two pages shorter than they normally are. But then again the next one if 3 pages longer than it normally is.

Yes people! I already have the next chapter written out! Both this chapter and the next were originally the same chapter but that was 22 pages long. Geez-louise. I know that no one would want to read all that in one chapter. So if this chapter seems incomplete then it'll all be taken care of next chapter! Promise! Plus some twists and turns coming up ahead.

I'll see you all in a few days, or at least when I finish editing. See ya! Thanks again to all those that read my story and reviewed.

Tiger Celeste


	5. Chapter 5

Note: I just want to say that this is my first fanfic story. I would greatly appreciate reviews and constructive criticism. Please NO flames. Despite popular belief there is a difference between the two and flames can be very hurtful things. Just thought I should point that out.

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"Have you spotted anything yet Sailor Moon?" questioned the masked man as he continued to search through a few crates before him.

"No." came the muffled voice of the blonde-haired senshi. Looking behind him Tuxedo Mask saw that Sailor Moon had gotten hopelessly tangled in a thick fish net. It was so thick that he was barely able to see the senshi trapped within. With a slight smile on his face at the scene she made, he asked, "How in the world did you manage to do that to yourself?"

"I thought I seen some footprints over there and I was making my way toward them when all of a sudden it fell on me! I don't know what happened." she replied embarrassed. A little more quietly she remarked, "Umm…..would you mind getting me out of here? I don't want the senshi to find me like this later on, I'd get fried for sure!"

"No problem. Stop squirming for a minute and I'll cut you out." he replied as he wiped the amused smile from his face. It would only serve to embarrass her more if she saw that he was trying not to laugh at her predicament. _'God. I think Odango and her could be the same people sometimes when they do things like this.'_

"Okay." As she said so, all movement under the net stopped. With a flick of his wrist, one of Tuxedo Mask's special steel tipped roses appeared and the tuxedo clad man went to work on freeing her. Within a few minutes however he came to realize that he was getting no where. Only a few sections of the net was cut and it still wasn't enough to free her.

"Sailor Moon," he called as he made the rose disappear with another flick of his wrist. "My roses aren't getting me anywhere. I'm going to use my sword's cane all right? Make sure that you don't move at all, I don't want to accidentally nick you or anything."

"No problem." came the muffled voice once more.

Pressing a hidden button on the side of his cane, a _'chink' _sounded and a hidden sword slid out of the black cane. With a few jerky but efficient movements, the cane cut through the net and it fell away revealing the red, white, and blue clad senshi.

"You feeling ok now?" he questioned as he grabbed her hand and hauled her up from the ground.

"Yeah. Thanks again for getting me out of there." she answered as she started dusting off her uniform.

"It was my pleasure. Besides what kind of gentleman would I be if I didn't help out a lady in distress?" he replied with a grin as he took off his hat and dipped into a flamboyant bow.

Serena starting laughing until a stray thought crossed her mind that caused her to roll her eyes in annoyance. _'Why can't all guys be gentlemen? Darien sure can't act like one.'_

"Something wrong?" questioned the man before her when he noticed her stop laughing and rolling her eyes.

"Hmm? Oh nothing. I was just thinking about some guy I know that could be more of a gentleman."

"Oh." he said for lack of anything better to say. He was about to suggest going back to the others when he remembered something she had mentioned while freeing her. "Where were those footprints you were going to investigate before you had that- uh- incident?"

"Oh! They were right over here. Follow me, I'll show you where they were at." she said as she carefully avoided the fishnet lying on the ground. Only a few steps away, she pointed to a track of footprints leading away from the water. Squatting down to a set of the prints, Tuxedo Mask lightly wiped one of his gloved hands against the water. Cautiously smelling the substance, he wasn't surprised that it smell like sand and seaweed.

"She came out of the water." he declared as he walked down the tracks, as if to prove his declaration to himself.

"Do you think that that's where she was called up from? Or how ever youmas get here." asked Sailor Moon as she peered at the footprints. "You know, I don't remember Maerina wearing any shoes." she remarked suddenly.

"What do you me----" he started before he noticed that there were two sets of tracks now heading toward the water's edge. Peering at the footprints carefully he said, "You're right, she wasn't wearing any shoes. But then, if that's true, whose footprints are these?" Looking closer at the footprints he noticed that they were fairly fresh, maybe made within the last five minutes.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here? You must be the famous Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask that Jadeite and Nephrite would blame their failures on." came a sudden sneer a few feet in front of the two people.

"Who are you?!" demanded Tuxedo Mask as he instinctively moved into a protective stance in front of Sailor Moon as he noticed the dark gray and very familiar uniform the man was wearing.

"Oh, forgive my awful manners." the man said as he came into full view. Like all the generals that came before him, he levitated a few feet into the air and bowed mockingly as he introduced himself. "My name is Zoicite and I am my Queen's fourth Dark Kingdom general. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"New general?" questioned the now-stiff Sailor Moon from behind Tuxedo Mask as she tried to see around the man that was blocking her view. Peering up on her tiptoes, she was finally able to see the general's profile floating in the air. With an arrogant flip of his shoulder length dirty-blonde hair, the green eyed man smiled condescendingly in her direction before answering.

"Indeed. Now, if you don't mind, I prefer to get you nuisances out of the way before you ruin my plan." With that the man conjured an emerald orb in his hand, swirling with Sakura blossoms and obvious dark energy. With a battle cry, the man threw the swirling orb towards the two and watched with satisfaction as the orb made direct contact.

"Pathetic." he murmured to himself as he waited for the smoke to clear. "Jadeite and Nephrite must have been incredibly weak to be defeated by the likes of them. They didn't even put up a fight."

He was startled when a golden discus surrounded by a dozen red steel-tipped roses flew in his direction. With a swear, he jerked out of the way before the discus hit him but not before a few of the roses cut through his uniform leaving trails of blood in their wake.

"I wouldn't be too sure of that." Sailor Moon declared from her position atop of streetlight. "My name is Sailor Moon, the champion of love and justice and on the behalf of the Moon, I will punish you!"

At the sound of laughing she looked toward the general to find him chuckling at her speech while balancing a newly formed energy ball in his hand. With a perplexed wrinkle on her brow the odango-haired girl wondered what the man thought was so funny.

"What was that, a pep talk for yourself?" he sneered with a smile as he levitated back down to the ground. "I don't have time for this." as he said this, he formed another energy orb and flung them both in Sailor Moon's direction. With a yelp, Sailor Moon jumped off the light in time to watch it melt halfway and fall to the ground with a metallic 'thuudd'.

'_That was a close one.' _she thought before glaring at the blonde haired man before her.

"_Lunar Light Tiara!" _ shouted Sailor Moon as she took off her tiara and focused her energy into the ruby jewel in the center of the tiara. Once the tiara was a golden power charged discus, she hurled it at the general without a second thought.

"AHHH!!" screamed Zoicite as he tried to raise a shield in time to protect himself from the brunt of the attack. Unfortunately the shield wasn't erected in enough time and the discus flew next to his head and cut his temple, dangerously close to his eye.

"My face! My perfect face! What have you done?!" he cried as he placed a hand on his bleeding face hoping the pressure would stop the blood flow.

"She has proved that she will put up a fight." Tuxedo Mask declared proudly as he spoke from his position alongside the fight. He had been watching Sailor Moon's progress since he had left her on top of the streetlight and was pleased that she had stood her ground thus far.

"That means _nothing_." said the enraged general. "One lucky shot does not mean she will put up a decent fight!"

"I beg to differ. She managed to catch you by surprise with her first attack and even managed to wound you on her second attack. The only wounds she has are from a subordinate youma and from a fall, not from you."

"Ahhhh!" he yelled irritated. "I'll deal with you two later. I need to prepare the next step of my plan and I don't have anytime to waste." With a swirl of Sakura blossoms the dirty-blonde haired man teleported away from the two warriors, leaving them staring at the rising ocean waves.

"Let's go back to the others." said Tuxedo Mask as he turned away from the roaring ocean waves that were strangely calling to him now. "The tide is starting to come in and I personally don't like the height those waves are starting to reach."

"You're right. We won't find anything now." answered the oddly subdued Sailor Moon as she followed behind her masked savior.

When she didn't say anything for a few minutes Tuxedo Mask became concerned. Looking over his shoulder, he saw that she was dragging her feet, not to mention her long hair, as she walked behind him staring at the ground. Stopping to wait for her, he asked her what was wrong.

"I was thinking……did you really mean what you said…. back there with Zoicite?" she asked quietly as she stopped a few feet away from him.

"What did I say?" he asked curiously. _'Did I say something wrong?' _ he asked himself as he tried to remember if he said anything negative to her.

"That-that I was able to put up a fight." she answered timidly.

"Of course." he answered without hesitation as he recalled what he had said. Walking closer to her, he placed his hands on her shoulders and tried to convey how sincere he was being by looking into her eyes. "Look, you managed to injure Zoicite didn't you? And he hadn't been able to hurt you?"

"Well…. yeah, but--"

"But nothing. I told you before, you can do it. Stop doubting your abilities already."

"But the others are always saying that I'm not a good leader or a good fighter. I mean look at how many times you have to rescue me or how many times I trip and fall during a fight. They're right!" she said miserably as tears started to sting her eyes.

"No, they're not. Has it ever occurred to you that maybe they're jealous of you? Of the power you display at every battle? And I'm sure that they don't _all _believe you're a bad senshi."

"Jealous?! I highly doubt they're jealous of me Tuxedo Mask. And they've all said, at least in one way or another, that I'm a bad senshi. And I don't mean just telling me to try harder -like you do. They have actually told me that I shouldn't be the leader anymore! Especially Re- I mean Sailor Mars." Once she was done talking, tears started to trail down her cheeks with no signs of stopping.

"Hey! Don't cry!" he said panicking as he noticed her tears flowing. _'Don't cry! Please don't cry! I don't know how to comfort someone who is crying! What am I supposed to do!?' _

Throwing all his caution to the wind, Tuxedo Mask followed his instincts and suddenly pulled Sailor Moon towards him and hugged her tightly. That seemed to be all the incentive Sailor Moon needed to let out all her emotions and as she clutched Tuxedo Mask's lapels, she buried her face into his chest and sobbed.

"Shhh, come on now. It'll be alright." he murmured to her as he started to stroke her hair. "Shhh."

After twenty minutes of Tuxedo Mask's comforting actions and words Sailor Moon eventually calmed down enough to step away from the tall man and take a deep breath. When her brain finally processed what had just transpired she turned a bright red in embarrassment yet she looked up at the man with a thankful smile.

"I'm sorry for that." she said as she smeared away the tears from her eyes and cheeks. "I don't know what came over me."

"You have no need to apologize." the man assured the blonde as he tried to hide the red that was now spreading through his cheeks as well by looking back out into the ocean. "You needed to vent your emotions. It was as simple as that."

"I know. I still don't want to be a burden to you. You know you didn't have to stay around, right?"

"I know." '_but I wanted to.' _he finished in his thoughts. "Come on. I think you should head back home. You've had enough excitement today."

"No!" she exclaimed, a little too forcibly. At the caped man's stunned look, she sheepishly smiled. "I have to help the others. I can't leave them to defeat the youma themselves."

"They've been done for some time already." the man replied simply.

"What?! Oh no! They've going to yell at me for abandoning them for sure!" she wailed, once more turning into the carefree girl she was.

"Just tell them about the general. Say that when Mercury had cast her fog, he had appeared before us and lured us away from the battle and into a battle of our own. Not exactly the truth, but not a lie either."

"Ooohhh-kay." came the hesitate reply before she signed forlornly. _'I really don't want to lie to them, but this is the only way. They wouldn't understand what really happened.' _

"Are you sure you will be all right?" came the sudden question a few moments later. Sailor Moon looked up at the man to see he was looking at her with concern.

"I'll be just fine. I'll tell them tomorrow so it gives them more time to calm down, hopefully."

"If they give you any trouble, just tell me alright? I'll be sure to give them a piece of my mind like I did in that last fight, okay?"

"You don't have to do that. You've done enough for me as it is." came her whispered reply. "I hate to leave so abruptly, Tuxedo Mask, but I want to get back home so I can avoid the others if they're still looking for me."

"That's just fine. It's about time for me to do something anyways. And by the looks of it, I only have about fifteen minutes left until I'm late." he sighed as he glanced at his watch.

"Until we meet again, my lady." the masked man replied with a rakish grin and another flamboyant bow toward Sailor Moon. In a flash of silk and velvet, Tuxedo Mask then jumped away back toward town.

"I'll see you around." she whispered when he was out of sight. Looking around cautiously Sailor Moon quickly power jumped out of the wharf and back towards her house that was over two miles away. Once she was far enough away from the wharf, she closed her eyes in concentration and pink bows and ribbons separated her senshi uniform and she was left in her street clothing once more.

"Until we meet again Tuxedo Mask." she murmured to the wind as she calmly walked home.

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"I can't believe she just abandoned us in the middle of a fight!" a raven haired girl ranted as she walked alongside two other girls- a tall brunette and a petite blue-haired girl.

"I'm sure there is a logical reason why Serena left Rei." replied the blue haired girl positively. "It just isn't like her to leave a fight without it being finished."

"I don't know Ami." replied the tall brunette. Crossing her arms behind her head in a thoughtful manner she continued, "I mean, I understand what you're saying, but Serena did leave us and that cost us to lose the battle. Maerina _got away _and she could come back at any moment; that's not something that would have happened if Serena would have stuck around. "

"True…" Ami replied helplessly. "But still---"

"But it still doesn't change the facts Ami." Rei cut in as she stopped in the middle of the sidewalk, causing the other girls to stop as well. "Serena _abandoned _us and she probably doesn't even care. Now if you would excuse me I promised Grandpa that I would help him clean out the temple today and I'm already really late as it is."

"Alright." sighed Ami. She knew that she was fighting a losing battle. While she believed that Serena must have had a logical reason for leaving the fight, she knew that the others didn't believe that or didn't care what the excuse was. Right now they only saw the fact that Serena had left.

"We'll see you later Rei." replied Makoto as she smiled easily toward the raven haired girl that was already walking away from them.

As the black-haired girl walked away, Makoto turned toward the thoughtful looking Ami and gently shook her shoulder to get her out of her thoughts. Once she was sure that Ami wasn't lost in her own little world she asked the bluenette what she wanted to do for the rest of the day.

"Well, I'm sure that the book store is still open…." she started before seeing the exhausted look in Makoto's emerald green eyes, quickly she changed her suggestion. "Umm-- a soda sounds really good after that battle. How about going to the arcade?"

"You read my mind!" the emerald-eyed girl exclaimed before grabbing the smaller girl's hand and dragging her toward the Crown Arcade.

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After Rei left Makoto and Ami alone, she was left to reflect on her thoughts. After this latest battle she knew that Serena had to be dealt with and soon. Unfortunately she had no idea how to go about doing that. Asking Ami or even Makoto for help was out of the question because she knew that they were fiercely loyal to their close friend and would not go against her no matter the circumstances.

That left the only other members of their little team- Luna and Minako. Rei knew that both were suspicious of Serena and her activities lately and more than likely followed Rei's belief that Serena was getting out of hand and needed to be dealt with but that did not mean that they would do anything about it- such as disowning Serena from the senshi team like Rei wanted to happen.

Rei contemplated what to do as she walked up the thousands of steps that lead to her home, the Hikawa Jinja- the Shinto shrine that had been in her family for generations. All the Hino family -including herself- prided themselves on the beautiful ancient cherry trees and pine trees as well as the nearly one thousand year old shrine that sat in the center of the Temple's vast lands. It was one of the oldest temples left in Japan and her grandfather often boasted this fact to tourists that visited the temple from time to time or even to the locals that knew the temple's history like the back of their hand already.

The peace and tranquility that the shrine brought Rei as she walked around the grounds gave her the motivation she needed to call Luna up on her communicator. She was glad that Ami had included Luna's own button and line on the communicators shortly after Makoto joined the team. It made it much easier to plan in secret when you did not have to hit the all-call button to get a hold of one specific cat.

"Luna here." came the clear voice of the humanoid cat only seconds after Rei pressed the black paw button on her communicator.

"It's Rei, Luna. I need you to come over to the temple right away."

"Why? Is something wrong Rei? A youma attack?" she asked worried as she peered closer into the video screen.

"No, there isn't an attack now. There was one a few hours ago though. That's what I wish to speak with you about."

"Why wasn't I informed of this battle?" the cat demanded, infuriated that she had been left out on that piece of crucial information.

"I had told Serena to inform you while we headed to the youma but when I found her on my way there, she had been laughing with Darien."

"That dim-witted girl!" Luna yelled as she started demanding where Serena was at so she could speak with her.

"I don't know where she is at, Luna. That's another reason why I want to talk with you. Serena abandoned us in the middle of the fight. Due to that, the youma got away from us. We lost the battle." she replied angrily as she stared into Luna's burgundy eyes that were slowly turning a darker color in her fury.

"WHAT?! She abandoned you?! Stay there Rei! I'm going to find that girl and----"

"NO! Wait Luna!" Rei cried when she saw Luna's paw move closer to the 'end call' button. "I want to come up with a plan to deal with Serena! That's why I called you. Come to the temple and we can work on a plan together."

"Fine." the black cat growled as she looked into Rei's flashing violet eyes. "I'll be there momentarily." The black cat then ended the call and Rei was left staring at a black screen.

"I would like to help as well." came a sudden voice from behind Rei. Stifling a gasp, Rei turned around to yell at the person when she spotted the golden-haired Sailor Venus stepping out of the pine trees. As she walked closer Sailor Venus's transformation faded into nothing leaving Minako standing in a knee length jean skirt and a yellow button up shirt tucked into the skirt.

"That is, if it all right with you." Minako finished as she stopped a few feet in front of Rei. "I have become very suspicious of Serena lately. Her behavior has become appalling, so much so that it is hard to see where she stands anymore. At the very least she should not be allowed to lead the senshi team anymore into battle if she cannot stay around for the fight to finish."

"I agree." Rei smiled victoriously. "Serena should not be trusted but the others do not see that fact as you, I, and Luna do."

"Agreed." came a third voice and both the blonde girl and the black-haired girl looked back surprisingly to see Luna running up the last few steps out of breath. _'How in the world did she get here so fast?'_ Rei thought to herself stunned. _'I just called her a few minutes ago. Oh well, I know she wouldn't tell me even if I asked. Let her keep her secrets.'_

When Luna finally got her breath back she finished her sentence, "It is time that we dealt with this problem before it gets out of hand."

"But how?" Rei questioned as she ushered both Luna and Minako into the house and then into her bedroom for privacy. She really was supposed to be helping her grandpa clean today and she didn't want him to catch her inside the house just yet.

"Well, there's been something I've been keeping from all you girls." Luna suddenly confided as she sat down on Rei's white and red bed.

"What is it?" asked the now intrigued Minako as she pulled up a large cushion and sat down on the floor.

"I've been having strange dreams about the past. About the Silver Millennium." Neither Rei or Luna noticed how Minako suddenly stiffened at the mention of the Silver Millennium or the panicky look that entered her eyes before she covered it up with curiosity.

"The Silver Millennium?" Rei questioned in awe as she settled down on the bed next to Luna.

"Yes and each of the dreams included Serena. In the night before last night's dream I watched as Serena joked around with the two former Dark Kingdom generals- Jadeite and Nephrite. She was treating them as if she was best friends with them and not the enemies they were. Several weeks of dreams have been quite similar to that, Serena being friendly to the generals and other unknown figures that are always covered in shadows. Last night's dream had to have been the worst by far though." She suddenly stopped as if remembering the dream hurt her. Her face was scrunched up in a strange mixture of pain and contemplation.

"Luna?" Rei questioned as she went to pet Luna behind the ears. Once she touched the cat, it seemed as if Luna returned to normal and the pain faded from her expression while the contemplation remained.

"I'm fine. Now, where was I? Yes, last night's dream was the worst. I watched as Serena willingly left behind you girls to follow the Dark Kingdom generals plus three other men that were hidden in the shadows. After that I seen flashes of the destruction the Moon Kingdom was left in. It was obvious to me, she left with the Dark Kingdom generals when they destroyed the Moon Kingdom." she stopped to register the emotions flying through the two girls' faces. She watched as mutual feelings of disbelief and rage crossed their faces before cold hard determination their eyes. Taking a deep breath, Luna finished her monologue.

"Serena was the ultimate traitor. She abandoned the entire kingdom and that means she is a danger to the Moon Princess. For all we know Serena could have possibly helped the generals in their destruction. She could have used her powers against the crown."

"That heartless bitch!" Rei cried as she jumped to her feet and started pacing angrily around the room while muttering to herself.

Venus was quiet for along while as she thought of the story Luna just told. She watched as Luna stared at the wall across the room with a glare set in her eyes and then watched as Rei continued to pace angrily and mutter to herself. Standing to her feet, she caught the attention of both of them and when she was sure they were watching her she talked clearly for them to hear.

"There is only one choice then. Serena must be detained and questioned immediately. We need to know if she remembers anything from her past life and if she is starting to follow her previous lifestyle. It is imperative that she be taken care of before the Princess is found. We do not want the Princess to be in the presence of someone that could hurt her, possibly kill her."

"Agreed." The two other occupants said as they immediately stopped their mutterings.

"We need to devise a plan." Luna declared as she jumped down from Rei's bed and stepped into the circle the two girls had formed with their talking. "We also need to start it as soon as possible."

"Tomorrow night then." Minako said. "That's the best time so we can perfect our planning in the meantime."

"Tomorrow." Rei said with a smile as she looked between Minako and Luna.

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Around 8:30, the same time that Minako, Luna, and Rei were finishing their plans for the next night, a certain blonde-haired arcade worker was making his way toward the secret room located underneath the back storage room to check on his request from a few days before.

Coming to the back storage room, Motoki pushed the few boxes away before lifting up the trap door and jumping down into the dark hallway. The torches that hung on the walls cast eerie shadows on the blonde-haired man's face and illuminated his weary expression. The sudden ominous thud that signified the closing of the trap door brought a shudder to the young man's body. Looking around cautiously, he wondered if anyone could be lurking in this place.

'_Don't be stupid Motoki._' the young man chided himself _'It's impossible to gain access down here, unless you know what you're looking for.'_

Taking a deep breath and shaking all preposterous thoughts form his head, Motoki now confidently made his way to the great door and slowly rubbed his hand against the symbol etched in the knocker before turning it counterclockwise. Walking into the secret room, his eyes caught sight of the weapons that lined the walls and he considered bringing one home with him when he left later on.

'_Nah, I won't need a weapon. At least I hope I won't need one.' _Motoki decided with another shake of his head. With that thought in mind, he continued toward the navy computer and when he finally reached its sensors he entered his name.

When the computer accepted his procedure and request to talk with the commander, he straightened out his clothing and waited to be acknowledged. Once more it was almost five minutes later before the ear-piercing screeching sound filled the room and the bluish-gray eyes of the Commander appeared before the arcade-worker.

"T11TMK," greeted the voice of the bluish-gray eyed man once again. "It is a pleasure to hear from you so soon."

"Greetings Commander." Motoki said as he bowed his head in a form of short greeting. Within a few seconds he straightened once more and took a deep breath. "If you do not mind myself asking, sir, I would like to inquire as to how the situation is going."

"There is no need for you to be worried. I have already requested the presence of two of my best warriors and they will arriving at Headquarters momentarily." reassured the Commander.

"When do you believe they will arrive in Tokyo, sir?"

"Hmmm. They should be arriving within the hour and then they will rest until mid-day tomorrow, so I will not be able to brief them until then. I would guess that they will arrive in Tokyo…. Thursday, at the very latest. I want to make sure they will be prepared for anything while in Tokyo."

"I understand." Motoki responded quietly. Inwardly, he was disappointed that he had to handle the situation by himself until later on in the week. _'I wouldn't be able to handle _both _Darien and Áine by myself.' _he thought miserably.

"So, T11TMK. How has the situation been proceeding on your side?" the Commander asked, bringing Motoki out of his thoughts.

"We might have more trouble, sir."

"More trouble?" the Commander questioned anxiously.

"Yes, sir. It seems that my..…that Áine has received word about Him. She has been in Tokyo for some time I gather." replied Motoki sheepishly.

"WHAT?!" yelled the normally calm man before a loud crash was heard on his side followed by numerous swears.

"C-commander?" questioned Motoki as he looked at the screen shocked. _'He's taking this worse than I am.'_

"Excuse me." the Commander said, unashamed as he straightened out his clothing and the chair that had crashed to the floor. "Now, do you know how long she has been in Tokyo?"

"N-no, sir. A few months previously I had suspicions when I had seen glimpses of a woman that looked very similar to her, but I had merely brushed them off as nothing. Now I wished I hadn't."

"That's quite alright T11TMK, I understand. You suspected her to be long gone, as all of us had as well. Do you know how long she has been there definitely though?"

"I believe she had been here constantly for at least a month, sir. She has already located the senshi and has been fighting alongside them for approximately three weeks. I was able to discover this information by questioning her when she came to the arcade yesterday."

"Good, good. Now, do you know whether He has had any contact with her?"

"I only know that yesterday, when Áine and myself where having a…..disagreement, he was observing her. I do not believe he has any previous contact with her however, at least besides the battles." Motoki commented.

"Does he know or at least suspect she is Sailor Venus?" questioned the Commander, his blue-gray eyes peering steadily into the screen.

"I do not believe he knows that she is Sailor Venus, otherwise he wouldn't of seemed curious to her presence and relationship to me that afternoon. And we already know that he does not know the civilian identity's of the other senshi. Senshi identities are not an issue with Him."

"That is very fortunate news then." the Commander said relieved. "T11TMK, I want you to be on your guard at all times, we do not know what to expect from that woman. She could very well be trying to finish her plan this time around."

"Yes sir!" Motoki agreed readily. "I was already on guard, sir, and I will continue to be so."

"Very good. Be---" suddenly the Commander broke off in his speech and his eyes disappeared from view. Straining his ears, Motoki could faintly hear another conversation taking place and the Commander's husky words ordering someone to do something.

"Excuse me, T11TMK. My two warriors have arrived and are requesting my presence immediately. It seems they want to leave as soon as possible. Even though- I am told- they look like they will collapse any minute."

"No problem, sir." Motoki replied easily. "I will leave you to your business."

"Thank you. One more thing, T11TMK."

"Sir?"

"Take one or two of the smaller weapons with you when you leave. _Always _have then on your person at _all _times, no matter what the circumstances. That is a _direct _order. Do I make myself clear?"

"Y-yes sir." Motoki was barely able to responded before the screen went blank. With an apprehensive frown on his face, Motoki slowly turned around and looked at the deadly weapons resignedly.

'_I was hoping it wouldn't come to this_._'_ the blonde-haired man thought sadly as he walked closer to the weapons. _'But I'm a warrior, first and foremost. I have to remember that.'_

With a sigh, Motoki picked up one of the many specialty guns and placed it in the back waistband of his pants. Inspecting the other weapons for a few more minutes, he finally settled on one of the shorter blades and strapped that underneath his pants on his right calf's side with a piece of firm leather. Glancing at the other weapons, he decided that he would be armed enough with the short blade and the gun. If worst came to worst, he could handle the situation in hand-to-hand combat.

"Always the warrior first, at least that's something Áine and I share. We're bounded to our duties forevermore." he whispered quietly as he made his way out of the secret room.

"Always bound and never free."

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3/31/07

Yay! Done with another chapter. Yes, yes I know I already said that I was done with this chapter. Well, as I was editing it, I decided not to include the original last four pages. Instead I took those out and added Motoki's scene with the Commander. If I had kept the original scene -which was the two generals arriving in Tokyo- then it would have thrown everything off balance.

But yeah, here's chapter 5! I really hope everyone enjoys it. (Don't forget to review, please!)

One morething, I was curious if anyone figured out who this "Commander" was yet. o Any guesses? Or any guesses as to what Áine/ Minako's plan is?

** MikiUsako90:** Yay, a new comer! Welcome to my story. I'm glad you seem to like my story, it means a lot that you took the time to read it. Well here's the next chap. for you. Yahoo! You added my story to your favorite list (Sorry if that seems like prying -.-) I'm a curious person. . Thanks a lot for adding me though! And for reviewing!

**Lady-Serenity-Selene-Eos-Iris:** Another new comer! I think this is a good sign, at least I hope this is a good sign.

I'm very happy that you like my story, I was always tired of the same-old stories and I always love a good twist so I made this story in honor of that. I mean wait until you get a load of my portrayal of Endymion. . I mean, there's a lot of Mamoru/Darien bashing out there and I thought I should provide a good story of him for a change.

Most people hate him or see him as the rescuer/ Rini's father and that's all. It's like people forget he's the _Prince of Earth. _Sorry if that offends anyone reading this. It's just a pet peeve of mine and I feel sorry for the poor guy. -sweat drop-

Anyways, I'm glad you like my twisted version of SM. I love thinking outside the box and the whole "what if this happened instead…." thing, it brings a whole lot of suspense to any story. . And for the whole name thing, it actually didn't take me a long time. The working title for this story was _Emergence_, not a far leap from Emerge to Reveal. I hope everyone can figure out what I mean by the title though. .

And yes, poor Usagi always does get the bad end of the stick, I just hope you won't kill me for all the hell she's going to be put through shortly. -another sweat drop- I'm glad you like all the suspense between the whole Endymion- Minako- Commander- and Motoki thing. It actually wasn't in my original planning but it was too good to pass up when the idea occurred to me.

All right, I think I talked your ears…er…eyes off. BTW, thanks for telling me I had anonymous reviews blocked. I didn't know I had it blocked. Thanks, hope you enjoy the new chapter. Thanks for reviewing!


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

Note: I just want to say that this is my first fanfic story. I would greatly appreciate reviews and constructive criticism. Please NO flames. Despite popular belief there is a difference between the two and flames can be very hurtful things. Just thought I should point that out.

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Rei and the others did not see Serena until late after school the next afternoon, due to Serena avoiding everyone throughout the day. All of the girls- including the rare visit from Minako- and Luna had gathered around together at their normal booth in the Crown Arcade talking.

Their visit had started out as any other did- chatting away and telling each other what had happened during their day and discussing how much homework they had received that Monday. Eventually though, Makoto brought up Serena's whereabouts and that spurred another conversation on what had happened to the blonde-haired girl during yesterday's battle. Rei, Luna, and Minako had come to a joint agreement that they would not mention their plan to detain Serena but that did not stop Rei and Luna from vocalizing their complaints about the odango-haired girl.

"She shouldn't of left! It is her duty to stay along with all you girls and defeat the youma." Luna complained in a hushed tone.

"I agree with Luna on that fact, you guys." Makoto agreed. "It _is _all of our responsibilities to make sure that everyone is safe from the youma and that it is destroyed before we leave. Serena didn't do that."

"But, that doesn't mean she---" Ami started to defend Serena, but before she could continue, Rei cut her off.

"But nothing Ami. The battle yesterday just shows how much of a failure Serena is as a senshi and lets not forget being a failure of a leader!" Rei said heatedly as she took a drink of her orange soda.

"Do you all think that?" came a whispered voice behind the table that had all the girls and Luna whipping their heads around to see Serena standing there, staring at them all sadly.

"Serena!" gasped out Ami as she noticed the unshed tears in the blonde's eyes. _'Oh, poor Serena. Why didn't I defend her better?'_

"No, we don't all think that." Makoto said gently as she stood up and came to hug the girl comfortingly before she could run away. "We just don't understand why you left early yesterday."

"Come on Serena, sit down." Ami urged with a friendly and kind smile as she slid further toward the window. With a timid smile on her part, Serena squared her shoulders and slid in next to Ami. Once Serena sat down, Makoto slid in beside her so she could not get out of the booth before she was done explaining.

"So Serena _why did _you abandon the others in the middle of a fight?" Luna questioned sharply as she turned her fiery burgundy eyes toward the odango-haired girl once the said girl had sat down.

Taking a deep breath Serena released it slowly and started to tell the story Tuxedo Mask advised her to tell them, just with a few of her own modifications. She told them that when Mercury had cast her fog she and Tuxedo Mask had been lured away from the battle by a new Dark Kingdom general. She also told them about how she and Tuxedo Mask had been caught up fighting in a battle of their own with the general, trying to extract his plan. And she told them that when the general finally transported away, she had looked everywhere at the wharf for the others but had come up empty handed so she eventually left.

"I don't believe it!" Rei declared immediately after Serena was done. The others were still silent as they thought over the story Serena had just finished.

"I don't either." Luna said as she looked toward the blonde-haired girl that had bowed her head sometime during her story. "There have been no signs of a new general for weeks and suddenly, when you just happen to disappear, there oh-so-conveniently happens to be a new general!"

"I believe you, Serena." Ami said as she placed her arm around the blonde and gave her a hug. "If you say that you had your own battle with a new general, then I believe that there was a general too."

"Thank you Ami." Serena said gratefully as she leaned her head on the blunette's shoulder. "That means a lot that you still believe in me."

"Don't forget about me, girl." Makoto said as she placed her hand on Serena's shoulder and squeezed gently. "I still believe in you too. I'm sorry about the things I said, I don't know what I was thinking. I should have known that you had a good reason for not helping us with Maerina."

"I understand Makoto. I'm not a very good leader or senshi. I _am _trying my hardest though." sniffled the blonde as she lifted her head away from Ami's shoulder to smile at the brunette.

"Don't say that Serena. We understand you are trying your hardest." came the reply of the up-until-now silent Minako as she reached across the table to squeeze the said girl's hand.

With a hard glare set on her face, Rei turned toward Minako with a look on her face that said "What are you doing?!" Ignoring the look on Rei's face, Minako gave Serena another smile before standing up.

"Where are you going Minako?" Ami asked when she noticed the blonde gathering her purse and other belongings.

"I need to finish something for school." she said with a wince. "I'm really sorry for leaving like this you guys but this project is worth _a lot _of my grade and I'm already not doing so well in that class."

"That's just fine Minako. We'll see you later on." Luna said as she glanced up at the girl with a twinkle in her eyes, silently telling her to not forget about their plan later that night.

"See you girls later!" Minako called back with a cheery smile on her face as she walked toward the doors. Just as she reached the arcade doors she felt the unmistakable feeling of eyes boring into the back of her head. Turning around slightly she saw her brother glaring at her coldly from his position behind the counter, silently telling her not to try anything. With a victorious smirk on her face she waved back at him as well before she stalked elegantly out of the door.

'_Don't worry dear brother. I will forgive you for your misguidance. Eventually.' _she thought as she walked down the street, her golden hair gently blowing about her face as she walked.

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"I _am _really sorry for doubting you Serena." Makoto said as she looked apologetically at the blonde girl. "I know that you wouldn't just leave during a fight. I guess I was just upset that Maerina got away."

"She got away?" Serena said shocked as she looked at Ami for confirmation. When the blue-haired girl have a weak nod in reply Serena felt her guilt increase ten-fold. "I'm so sorry for leaving. I didn't expect that she would get away. I mean, I assumed you guys would have been able to take care of her.You're all stronger than I am."

"It's all right Serena. We'll just get her next time. Even if you were there, she probably would have still gotten away. She seemed very determined to live. I mean by the time she got away, she was missing a whole arm, had scorch marks all over her body, and all kinds of gashes everywhere else. She was barely able to even walk; yet she kept taking hits until she fled into the water." pointed out the ever-logical Ami.

"Yeah, Serena. It's all right that you weren't with us. You were taking care of your own battle." nodded Makoto.

"Oh, please." Rei said as she looked at the blue-haired girl and brunette that were reassuring Serena in front of her. "I don't care what you guys think about Serena. She had no right to leave, it's her duty to stay and defeat the youma first and foremost. She probably felt tired and made up that whole story about the general."

"I agree." came Luna's harsh reply. "Serena you should have known better. Making up a story to excuse your laziness."

"Now just wait a minute!" Makoto declared as she stood up to her full height and leaned angrily toward Rei as she slapped her hands down on the table forcefully. "Neither of you have any right to say that to Serena. She's been trying her hardest ever since she became a senshi and she is always improving."

"I agree." Ami said as she also stood to her full height, however not as intimating as Makoto's stance was. "I have been with Serena the longest besides you, Luna, and I have watched first hand how much Serena has improved. You have no right to degrade Serena."

"And in all the time that you have been with Serena, how many blunders have you watched her make while fighting, Ami? How many trips, falls, and misses has she had?" Luna pointed out as she glared at the blonde that was trying to shrink away from her burning glare.

Turning to Rei, she told her that she had had enough and that it was time to leave. With a compliant nod Rei opened her red side bag and watched as Luna jumped into it and hid herself away from view. Without a word to the three girls that were watching the scene silently, she marched out of the arcade determinedly in the direction of her house.

"Just what is their problem?" Makoto questioned to the air, not expecting to receive an answer from either girl. With a sigh, she walked to the other side of the booth and slide in to give Serena and Ami more room on their side.

"Don't worry about it guys." Serena said softly as she scooted over. "Let's just put this incident behind us."

"Good idea Serena." Ami smiled as she sat down again. As she turned toward Serena, she finally took notice of the girl's pink and white backpack that was resting in her lap. "Why is your backpack so full, Serena?" she asked curiously.

"Oh! I forgot about that." said the blonde sheepishly as she placed it on the table in front of her. "I've been reflecting a lot about what you guys and Luna have said about me being more proficient in my schooling." _'Not to mention a certain masked man's words.' _

As Serena talked, she missed the peculiar infliction in her voice and her word choice that caused the two girls she was talking to raise their eyebrows and glance questionably at each other.

"What do you mean?" questioned Makoto as she watched the blonde-haired girl dragging her large Geometry book out of her backpack.

"I need help." Serena said simply. "I want to raise my grades to show you all that I really am trying. But to show everyone that, I need someone to explain what's going on."

"Oh Serena! I'm so proud that you are taking some incentive." Ami exclaimed happily. "I'll be more than happy to help you with your schoolwork."

"I'm proud of you too, girl. And while I'm not very good at school, like Miss Genius over there," as she said this she pointed to the girl that was eagerly searching through Serena's folders of work. "I'll still be more than happy to help you with whatever I can."

"Thanks a lot you two. I really want to do better in school and I realized I can't do that if I don't get some help first." Serena said as she looked relieved at the two girls. "And what better people than you guys?"

"Yeah!" cheered Makoto. "Besides that, I want to see Ms. Haruna's face when she gets a look at all those good grades I'm sure you're going to get!"

"That's a great idea Makoto!" exclaimed Serena happily, with no traces of her previous sadness in her voice or expression. "I'm sure that will surprise her to no end! I mean sure I get B's every now and then, but that's in art! Wait until I can get a good grade in math or history! And wait until the jerkwad gets a good look at my schoolwork! That might finally kill him!"

"Can we start now, Ami? I want to start as soon as possible so I can shove my good grade in Darien's face." Serena said happily, as she imagined the said man fainting from shock. Unable to stop a giggle, she turned toward Ami.

"Already ahead of you Serena." Ami said as she pulled out some lined paper and a few pencils. "Okay, what area do you need the most help in?"

Flipping through her geometry book, she found the chapter she wanted and pushed the book toward Ami. With a frown, Ami noticed that Serena had pointed to chapter 3 in the book.

"Why didn't you ask for help earlier, Sere? We're already on chapter 9 in class!" Makoto pointed out with a frown.

"I didn't think anything could help me." Serena replied with a sheepish shrug. "I'm awful at school."

"All right, enough of that. You're not bad at school Serena." Ami said loudly to capture both girls' attention. "Next time you don't understand something, ask one of us okay? We promise to help you to the best of our abilities."

"Yep, we promise." Makoto said as she leaned across the table to get a good look at the math book. "All right, I think I remember this chapter. What you do is….."

And that's how the girl's night past. Both Makoto and Ami spent three hours helping Serena with her math problems while Serena listened carefully and tried her hardest to absorb everything they taught her. Eventually they came to the point where they all became tired of studying and agreed to finish the study later on. But before they ended their session however, Ami decided to quiz Serena on last time.

"Okay Serena. Now which of these graphs is _translated_?" Ami asked as she pointed to a particular problem in the book.

"Ummm..." she mumbled in thought as she chewed on her pencil eraser, before timidly answering "Is it number...3?"

"All right, now how many degrees is this angle right here?" Ami questioned with a smile. _'I think she has it all covered.'_ she thought excitedly.

"Hmmm…..lets see….is it 54 degrees?" Serena answered as she worked out the problem on a piece of strap paper.

"Correct!" Ami exclaimed gleefully as she hugged Serena in her enthusiasm.

"Yeah! You go girl!" Makoto cheered as well as she gave Serena a high five. "It looks like you've mastered one chapter and a half in three hours. I am truly impressed, it took me weeks when we were going over those chapters to understand them."

"All right! Now I'm only four and a half chapters behind. I think I might be able to catch up soon you guys, at least if we can do this again." Serena said happily. "Too bad I didn't pay attention when we were going over this stuff the first time."

"I don't blame you Serena. We do have math first period, it's a killer." Makoto said sympathetically. "Especially after a long night youma fight."

"Maybe I can talk with Ms. Haruna. I'm sure that if she could see how serious you've become about your school work then she will give you a second chance to make up all those tests." Ami thought out loud as she glanced blankly at the book in front of her before blinking out of her thoughts. "How does that sound Serena?"

"Nah, that's alright Ami. It's my own fault for not paying attention earlier." Serena said before glancing at the clock on the far side of the wall. With a groan she realized that it was almost eight o'clock and that meant she had to be home in twenty minutes. With a sigh she started gathering all her belongings and placing them back into her backpack.

"All right you guys, I really need to leave now. I have to be home in twenty minutes and it's starting to get darker." the blonde girl said as she put on her backpack and gave both the girls a tight hug as they stood up.

"Alright Serena, do you want someone to walk with you?" Makoto asked as she pulled back from her hug. "It'll be really dark by the time you get home."

"Nah." she answered with a smile. "I'll be just fine and besides, I'm Sailor Moon; the champion of love and justice. I can handle myself." she finished with a wink.

"Be careful Sere." Ami said as she bid the blonde a good night as they all walked out of the arcade doors.

With another parting hug, the two girls watched as Serena started the long journey home alone, more than likely taking the short cut through the park.

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A pure black cat, ordinary except for a peculiar crest moon on her forehead, slowly walked into the living room of the Tsukino household. Looking to make sure all of the family members except for Serena were present, she slowly walked in front of the television they were all watching.

With a simple twitch of her tail, Luna's crescent moon on her forehead started to glow brightly and three identical beams on light burst from the crescent insignia and landed on the three occupants' foreheads. Immediately the occupants' eyes took on a vacant look and a slight burgundy color to match the color of Luna's eyes.

"All right Ikuko, Kenji, and Sammy, here is the story." Luna began in a slightly hypnotic voice. "Ikuko, you and your husband allowed Serena to visit your sister-in-law and her family that are sick in Kyoto. Serena had felt sorry for her aunt, uncle, and two cousins because they were unable to make their annual trip to your house and she went to take care of them. In a few days your sister-in-law will call to tell you that Serena has fallen ill as well and she would like Serena to stay in Kyoto to keep an eye on her and to make sure that you do not catch their illness. You agree that that is best and allow them to keep Serena in Kyoto for as long as needed. Is all that understood?"

"Yes Luna." Ikuko answered simply. "Serena will be gone for some time taking care of my sick sister-in-law and her family."

"Good. Okay girls, did you hear all of that story?" Luna questioned the two young girls that were waiting in front of the front door still.

"Got it Luna. Serena's visiting some sick relatives that she felt sorry for." Minako responded as she glanced about the house.

"I heard all of it as well." came Rei's dutiful reply. "We'll tell everyone that when they ask where Serena has been lately."

"All right, let's finish the rest of the plan. Serena should be walking home about now." came Luna's reply as she walked out of the living room. "They'll be coming out of that hypnosis soon and we should be out of here before then."

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Within ten minutes of walking Serena was nearing the center of the park. However it was so dark now that she could not see more than three feet in front of her and, because of that, as she was walking past an old oak tree she tripped over a hidden tree root.

"Ooofff!" she cried as she had the breath knocked out of her and fell sprawled out on the ground. Laying in her prone position for a few seconds to catch her breath again, Serena started to feel the rocks and other foreign objects that were biting into her knes and hands. With a pained wince, she slowly picked herself up and then sat on her butt to assess the damage done to her knees. Slowly picking out the small rocks and pieces of wood that were embedded into her hands she then started to pick out the ones that were in her knees.

"Owww, that's going to leave a mark in the morning." she complained as she looked at her bleeding knees. Pressing her fingers lightly around the cuts on both knees, she was rewarded with a stabbing pain on her left knee. Blinking back pain induced tears, she slowly stood up and painfully continued on her way back home.

As she stumbled her way through the park, she never noticed the pair of eyes that were following her trek from the foliage of a tree or the faint conversation that was taking place.

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"All right. It seems that because of the fall Serena has lowered her guard. She will be much easier to catch this way." came the whispered reply from the pair of blue eyes that were following Serena's movements.

"Please, like that crybaby would expect anything like this to happen. It's just another incident that shows Serena's lack of any good leadership skills." came the hotly reply of the pair of flashing violet eyes that were also following the odango-haired girl's movements through the park.

"That is true. She doesn't have all the skills that are needed to be a proficient leader." agreed the first voice.

"And she'll never have them. She isn't cut out to be the leader of a geese flock, much less the sailor senshi. Now come on, this will probably be the only good chance we'll have to catch her alone for some time." came the second voice, accompanied by a red clad senshi with waist length raven hair and violet eyes. She jumped out of the tree and looked up towards her companion.

"I know. We need to catch Serena and get her back to my apartment as fast as we can. We don't want the others to find out about this and they might find out if we stay longer than necessary around here." came the response of the orange clad senshi with golden hair and blue eyes that was soon jumping out of the same tree. As she turned to look back towards her partner, the heart-linked chain around her waist flashed ominously in the dark.

"Come on. Serena is still walking slowly so she hasn't managed to get far away." Sailor Mars said as she jumped back into one of the trees and waited for Venus to choose between her own land or air attack.

"Okay, lead the way." the orange clad senshi replied as she took cover by jumping within her own tree's foliage.

After jumping via a few more large trees, Sailor Mars finally spotted the unique hairstyle belonging to the girl once more. Giving a silent signal to Venus, the two girls jumped out of their individual trees and readied their attacks. Venus with her heart-linked chain and Mars with her flame bow and a few arrows. Earlier that night they had both decided that they wouldn't call out their attacks so Serena would be caught completely unprepared.

As Sailor Venus moved forwards, a twig snapped loudly under her feet. Both herself and Mars glanced down to glare at her feet before their heads snapped up to look up into Serena's face. As Serena looked upon her adversaries, her peaceful yet still pained expression melted into one of panic and confusion at seeing flaming arrows and a deadly chain directed at her.

Serena didn't have time to question the two senshi's motives before two flaming arrows were heading straight for her. As she twisted around to run, one of the arrows managed to burn through the fabric of her school uniform and leave a nasty burn mark on her right shoulder. The other arrow missed her left cheek by a just few centimeters. With a pained cry, she grabbed onto her throbbing shoulder and ran with all her might towards the safety of her house. She only managed to get about 25 feet away before another arrow sailed dangerously close to her head however.

Without looking back during her dash, Serena finally questioned the girls. "What's wrong you two? Why are you doing this; aren't we all supposed to be a team!?" Hearing a great heave behind her, Serena prepared herself for an attack. Unfortunately, she couldn't prepare herself for Sailor Venus throwing her wink-chain at her running feet or being pulled to the ground with all the golden-haired senshi's might. For the second time that night, Serena fell to the ground and had all her breath ripped from her lungs.

Wasting no time, she quickly turned over and looked behind her to see the murderous face of Mars and the blank but somewhat remorseful face of Venus coming closer by the second. As she looked into their expressions however, she still couldn't find the answer to her question. _'What is wrong with them? Are they being possessed?' _she asked herself as she struggled to her feet while still trying to get all her need oxygen back into her lungs.

As Serena reached up to place her hand on her speeding heart, her hand came in contact with cold metal. _'My broach!' _she thought relieved. _'I forgot I had it with me all this time!' _

Clutching her hand tightly around the broach, she was just about to pull it free from her uniform and call out her transformation when a golden heart chain came sailing towards her chest to wrap around the broach. With a mighty pull the broach clasped free and flung into Sailor Venus's waiting hand while leaving a shallow cut in Serena's collarbone. With a small, shocked cry Serena looked up into Venus's cold blue eyes as the golden-haired girl flicked her wrist and dropped the broach into her subspace pocket.

"Serena. Just come with us peacefully and no harm will come to you." came Venus's indifferent voice that cut through the silence that had enveloped the three warriors.

"No!" Serena denied fiercely. "I refuse to go anywhere with you when you are acting like this. What is wrong with you? What have I done that would cause you to do this to me?"

"What have you done?" came Rei's shrill voice that slowly rose in volume as she talked. "You mean besides being a no good leader and a worthless senshi? I'll tell you what you have done! You betrayed the Silver Alliance and the Lunarian monarchy ten thousand years ago! You and the Dark Kingdom generals destroyed the Moon Kingdom!"

"What?" whispered Serena shocked as she stared at the two disbelievingly. "What makes you think that I betrayed anyone? Especially with the Dark Kingdom generals?"

"Luna has been having recurrent dreams- no nightmares!- of you having fun with the generals and treating them as your best friends. She's even had a number of dreams with you abandoning the Moon Kingdom with them before it lays in ruins! And lets not forget the oh-so-convenient general that happened to appear when you disappeared from the fight. How do we know you weren't helping Maerina the other night?" Rei questioned sharply as she prepared a fireball in her hand.

"Face it Serena." the quiet Sailor Venus said as she clenched her hands tighter around her heart-linked chain, "There have been many incidents that don't show you in a very good light. And many involve the generals, or even Tuxedo Mask. He still may be a traitor yet you are quick to defend him in any circumstances, even defending him against us."

"Now come along peacefully with us Serena." Mars said as she balanced the fireball in her hand. "We just want to ask you a few questions."

"NO!" screamed Serena with all her might as she picked herself up and ran as fast as she could away from the girls. She didn't get far before a fireball hit her upper back however. With a scream of pain, she collapsed into a heap on the ground. Closing her eyes and gritting her teeth against the pain, she struggled to stand up once more before she shrieked and dropped to the ground with tears staining her cheeks once again. Looking to her upper arm -very close to the scorch mark that was still throbbing on her shoulder, she saw that Venus had been successful with her throw this time around as well as the chain was now wrapped tightly around her arm. Struggling to stay wake even with her pain, Serena strained her ears to listen to what Sailor Venus had begun to say.

"On behalf of the Silver Alliance and the Moon Kingdom, I -Sailor Venus- hereby declare Sailor Moon, also known by the civilian identity Serena Tsukino, under arrest and questioning for the betrayal of the Moon Kingdom and Silver Alliance. If she does not------"

Serena was not able to hear more of Venus's monotone speech because the blissful darkness that captured her pain rendered her unconscious. Before she could completely fall asleep however, she could not stop a stray thought from crossing her mind.

'_I've heard that before….it was just _different _somehow.' _was her last coherent thought before she allowed her eyes to close, welcoming the darkness to take her away from her pain.

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It was not even an hour later that Minako and the others had settled Serena into an extra bedroom in Minako's apartment and had her restrained to the bead's headboard.

The only strange event that occurred during that time was when Luna and Rei were trying to think of a way to restrain Serena. While they were thinking, Minako had mysterious summoned two pairs of golden light handcuffs that were extendable to allow Serena some movement from her subspace pocket. She ignored all the questions and curious looks she received from both Rei and Luna and calmly fastened Serena to the headboard.

"Where did you get those handcuffs Minako?" Luna questioned suspiciously as she jumped onto a chair near the head of the bed and looked toward the golden-haired girl that was staring at Serena blankly.

"I just thought ahead." she replied as she looked back innocently at the glaring burgundy eyes of Luna. Standing up to stretch, Minako started pacing around the room while trying to keep her eyes from straying toward Serena.

"All right." Luna said, but she still couldn't cover the suspicion that was present in her voice.

"Will you stop pacing!" suddenly snapped Rei as she straightened from her position leaning against a far wall.

"I can't help it!" Minako snapped back as she continued to walk around the room. "I still feel fidgety, even when I know that we are done and no one knows what we did."

"Then take a walk." Luna suggested as she turned her attention toward the immobile girl on the light pink and purple comforter she was resting on. "Serena has not awaken yet and she has shown no signs of doing so. We can handle it from here."

"That's a great idea." Minako said as she practically dashed toward the apartment door. Yelling a quick good-bye, she slammed the door behind her as she stalked toward the elevator and out of the apartment building.

Once she was out of sight of any of her 5th story apartment windows, Minako sprinted away from everything. Closing her eyes tightly, she tried to hold back the tears that started burning her eyes as the thoughts of what she had just done bombarded her. She pushed past anyone that came in her way without a thought of guilt or apology as she continued to run blindly through the streets; barely opening her eyes as she ran.

Five minutes later she collapsed from mental and physical exhaustion right there in the park, where everything took place. Struggling to turn around, she flipped her body over until she was lying flat on her back. With a tormenting movement, Minako opened her eyes to see the full moon staring down at her accusingly from her position soaring in the stars. With another anguished cry, the saddened girl curled into the smallest ball her body allowed her to form, trying to hide from everything around her.

"Please, oh please, forgive me!" she cried to the heavens as she finally allowed all her mental suffering be released in the form of heart-wrenching sobs.

"Please forgive me. I don't have any choice left in the matter!" she cried once more before her tears fully encompassed her body, leaving her no more than a weeping girl crying out her sorrows and regrets.

The moon only continued to look down at the girl unforgiving as it cast her glow over Earth for another night.

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4/25/07

Well another chapter is done! Sorry for the long delay, my life caught up with me and it proceeded to trap me into this dark little cell until I got my work and everything else done. Thus the reason why this has been done since I posted the 5th chapter yet I can only post now. Well, anyways I really hope you enjoy this chapter. I know I love it, partly because I love the ideas that are following through my head in regards to the story and because I love the fact that most of them are _original _and I just love how well -surprisingly well I might had- that I've been doing on this story.

So...what did you all think? I bet your really confused about where Minako really stands in all this. Between the scouts and the negaverse and not to mention between Luna/Rei and Sailor Moon, just where do you all think she stands? Is she on the evil side or on the sailor senshi's side? Heehehe. You'd never guess what I'm really planning for this story. .

**Sidenote**: I want to make sure everyone paid attention to the scene between Serena, Makoto, and Ami after Rei and Luna left. It's important to note out that Serena is slowly starting in improve her schoolwork, it'll be...important later on, if I stay on track that is.

Alright, now for the reviews. I must say that when I saw the number of new reviews I was seriously thinking _**'What the hell?' **_I had to have gone back and forth three times making sure that I clicked on the right links and everything. I am so incredibly happy that you all like my story though. It makes me glad that I'm writing the story for our's enjoyment, not just my own. .

I want to say thank you to **Rae**, **Double G**, **MikiUsako90**, **ffgirlmoonie**, **skye668**, **Mesa Goddess of Mischiep**, **yashirochan**, **Just Kiddin'**, and **Darkfire **for all reviewing. It means a whole lot to me that you guys take the time to read my story and actually review it while your at it. This chapter is for you guys!

Tiger Celeste


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

Note: I just want to say that this is my first fanfic story. I would greatly appreciate reviews and constructive criticism. Please NO flames. Despite popular belief there is a difference between the two and flames can be very hurtful things. Just thought I should point that out.

**Note: This story is set Thursday, while Serena is still being held captive. Ami and Makoto don't know about Serena's status yet and they're just continuing on with their lives, thinking Serena's visiting relatives. **

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_Dear Ami-_

_There was an emergency at the hospital and I needed to go. I left you some dinner in the oven, it's a roast with all those vegetables that you love. Please be a dear and wash the dishes for me after you eat. I'll be home tomorrow afternoon, around 1 o'clock._

_Love you-- Mom. _

"So much for that mother-daughter time we planned for tonight, huh Mom?" a blue-haired girl said to herself sadly before placing the hastily scribbled note back on the counter where she had found it. Quickly glancing at the clock in the front room, she saw it was already half past six o'clock.

With blue eyes brimming in sadness, the girl picked up her side backpack from the counter bar chair she had placed it on and started heading to her room to put everything away. As she was walking down the pristine white hallway that lead to both her and her mother's rooms, she could not help but stop to stare at her mother's 'Doctor of Medicine' degree that was just one of the many awards that hung on the walls.

As a child, Ami had always had mixed feelings regarding the diploma and all that it meant. On one hand the diploma was the one thing that always kept her mother from her day-in and day-out. It was what had always ruined all those long awaited picnics and all the trips to the zoo while Ami was growing up. Ami couldn't even recall how many times her mother had to leave to the hospital and all the resulting canceled plans that followed in the wake of the dreaded emergency call.

But on the other hand, the diploma was something that Ami had been proud of for her mother's sake. When she was growing up in Germany, she would proudly declare to anyone that listened that her mother was one of the leading doctors at the most prestigious hospital in the country. Many people held the outmost respect for her mother and her job and Ami could only dream what it would be like to also be a doctor.

Which led to her deciding -at the young age of six- to follow in her mother's footsteps and becoming a doctor in her own right. Sometimes, she would just stare at the diploma imagining her own and what it would be like to be a doctor like her mother.

As a teenager, Ami's feelings regarding the diploma still hadn't changed. She still shared the same love-hate relationship with the diploma as she always had. One minute she wanted to throw the diploma into the depths of Hell for causing her mother and her to have a loving, but still distant, relationship. Yet, she would then stare at the degree and feel ashamed for thinking such things.

Her mother had worked many years to earn all that she had now and it wasn't right to wish that she had never become a doctor simply because Ami was selfish and wished to have her mother all to herself. Right now though, Ami couldn't look at the degree without being reminded that once again her long awaited plans with her mother had been ruined, as they always had.

Squeezing her eyes shut against the sudden stinging of tears, Ami blindly navigated her way to her room and pushed open the door uncharacteristically roughly. With a sniffle and quick wipe of her nose, she opened her eyes to see her clean and soft blue-colored room on the other side of the door threshold. With a sniffle, Ami walked into her bedroom and placed her side pack on her desk before going to lay down on her bed to stare blankly at the ceiling.

The scene that was painted on her ceiling brought a soft smile to Ami's face, even in her saddened state. When her mother had been offered a job at the General Hospital here in Tokyo last year, Ami had been sad to learn that she would be leaving the only home she knew- Germany. While Ami had been born in Japan and lived there for the first three years of her life with her Japan-native mother and Germany-native father, she had always been told she had become happier when she moved to Germany.

In Germany, Ami felt like she was always at home. But when she returned to Japan, she had felt like she had a duty here all along. When she became Sailor Mercury last year, she learned that her destiny lied in Tokyo with the other Sailor Senshi. She had returned to where she belonged the entire time.

No matter what she felt in regards to Japan though, Ami would always miss Germany and her father knew that. Her parents had divorced when Ami was only seven but her parents had always remained in contact with one another, for her sake. They had both agreed that they would allow Ami to live with her mother, since she was more stable than her constantly traveling father but Ami had always felt as if she lived with both parents her whole life.

When her and her mother first moved to Japan, Ami's father had traveled with them to help them settle in. He wouldn't be staying however, much to Ami's displeasure. He had made the decision to stay in Germany to continue his painting career.

As a gift to Ami while he was in Tokyo though, her father offered to paint her anything she wanted. Right away Ami knew what she had wanted; a mural with her mother, father and herself in her favorite park in Germany.

In the mural, her mother and father had their arms wrapped around her in a loving embrace and they were all laughing joyously. In the scenery, tons of light green trees filled the park with birds painted in an eternal flight in the sky.

Beside the bench that Ami and her parents were sitting on was a gigantic fountain with the water spout being a little ice-skating girl spitting water out at a little boy who was in the motion of skating away from the girl. The day was painted in a perfect Spring day, a day where you could relax with no worries and just have the sun beating down on you.

It was an eternal picture of their happy family in one of the most beautiful places Ami had ever seen. It always managed to bring a smile to her face, no matter the circumstances. Right now, it brought a peaceful smile on her face, even when she was so depressed over her and her mother's ruined plans.

"Thank you for this Dad." she whispered as she stared at the mural. "It is the best gift you could have ever given me."

Suddenly a loud growl issued from the blue-haired girl's stomach and she laughed weakly in reply. "Well, I guess I'll eat some of that roast Mom left for me."

Ten minutes later, Ami was just beginning to dish out her now-reheated dinner when a beeping sound issued from the pocket of her blue uniform skirt.

"A youma?" she murmured to herself worried before she placed her silverware down. Hurriedly, she reached into her pocket to take out her Mercury computer.

The beeping sound grew stronger in the room as Ami lifted the lid of her small blue computer and peered inside. Suddenly, issues of information started scrolling down the screen, almost faster than Ami could read it all. She barely managed to read the warning about dark energy in the town before a map appeared on her screen with a blaring red beacon symbolizing the youma's location.

"Now, do you have any statistics on this youma?" she murmured to her computer before frantically typing in a long series of code.

"Hmm… location, park. What else is new? Estimated time since first attack, 20.53 minutes. God, why did I receive the warning only now then? Energy radiating from attacks… aquatic? Does that mean…" Ami trailed off with a frown before typing in another long series of code, trying to pinpoint the youma's signature that is left behind at a battle scene.

"It's Maerina!" she gasped out before frantically pressing the 'All call' button in the top right-hand corner of her keyboard. In only a few seconds, Makoto answered the call with worried emerald eyes peering into Ami's computer screen.

"What's up, Ami?" she questioned anxiously as she tightened her ponytail with her free hand. "Youma attack?"

"Yes, it's in Central Park. It's Maerina's doing Makoto, she's back for a second round. She been attacking in the park, near that large fountain on the west side of the rose garden." Ami said hurriedly.

"Got it!" Makoto said with a firm nod. "Have you gotten a hold of the others already? Well, all of them but Serena that is."

"No. They're not responding. I'll try again as I head down there." Ami said as she waved an anxious hand in the air to reach into her subspace pocket. Pulling out her transformation pen, she told Makoto that she would meet her at the battle.

"I'm already on my way!" Makoto's voice could be heard before the screen went blank.

Once the call had ended, Ami hurriedly stuffed her mini-computer into her subspace pocket for later use and ran to the door. She pulled the door open hurriedly and barely gave herself time to lock the door before slamming it behind her. As Ami looked down to the hall toward the elevator, she dismissed the thought as soon as it came to her and ran toward the stairs to climb toward the roof.

Breaking through the doors, she watched as a few pigeons scattered away from her. Giving no thoughts to the squawking of angered birds, she lifted her transformation pen above her head and shouted out her transformation phase, for only the birds to witness her secret being revealed.

"_Mercury Power!" _

Instantly, streams of blue water encircled Ami's body before bursting out to reveal herself to be dressed in a white body suit complete with a small blue bow on her chest and another blue bow resting on her lower back, a pair of blue knee-high boots enclosed on her feet, white elbow length gloves encased on her hands, and a golden tiara with a sapphire jewel in the center resting on her forehead.

Within only those few moments, Sailor Mercury stood in the place where Ami once stood. Taking a deep calming breath, Mercury pressed her left hand earring to make her visor appear before her eyes and she then quickly scanned the surrounding area to make sure that no other youmas were around.

When she received no sign of Dark Kingdom energy, she took a running start and jumped off the roof onto the next building roof. She proceeded like that for almost ten more minutes until she caught sight of the park below the apartment building she was standing on.

"_Divine Lightning Air Strike!" _came a distant shout before a loud feminine scream echoed throughout the depths of the park. Ami watched as sudden lightning appeared in the rapidly darkening sky and struck down in the designated area that her computer was reading negative energy.

With a pensive sigh, Mercury pulled out her communicator and pushed Sailor Mars and Sailor Venus's individual communication signals so she wouldn't disturb Sailor Jupiter during her battle. When neither Sailor Mars or Sailor Venus didn't answer her call right away, she hurriedly pressed both buttons two more times, signaling her call was very important.

"Come on you two." the blue-haired girl mumbled frantically to herself as she glanced down at the ground from her position high atop the building she was on. Taking another deep breath, she jumped down onto the hard cement, like always landing on her feet like a feline. Anxiously, she glanced at her communicator once she was dashing off toward Jupiter and Maerina. "It never takes this long to respond. I need to help Jupiter against Maerina. One of you guys answer already."

"Venus here." came the response almost immediately after Mercury said this. The golden-haired senshi appeared on the screen with concerned blue eyes. "Where's the battle?"

"Central park, near the fountain on the west side of the rose garden. It's Maerina, Venus. Call Mars while your heading here as well; I can't get a hold of her." came Mercury's curt response as she hurriedly ended the call and shoved her communicator into her subspace pocket. Without another second delay, she continued to dash toward Jupiter and Maerina's fight.

Only ten feet before Mercury would have reached the site of the battle, she suddenly heard Maerina's enraged scream directed toward Jupiter.

"_You lightning-wielding dimwit! You'll pay for hitting me with that!" _shouted Maerina before a high-pitch scream filled the air and the sounds of fierce cursing and the crashing of trees could be heard directly afterwards.

"Jupiter!" Mercury yelled worriedly before she broke into the clearing the battle had created. Quickly analyzing the situation with her visor, she saw that Maerina only had a few scorch marks along her body while Jupiter was laying unconscious at the base of one of the trees she had crashed into. All along Jupiter's body were bruises and several tears in her bodysuit, all signifying how hard she had stood against Maerina by herself.

"_Veiling Bubbles!"_ Mercury yelled out determinedly before rushing over to where Jupiter laid unconscious.

"Jupiter! Jupiter, can you hear me?" she whispered out worriedly as she slowly rubbed the back of Jupiter's head to bring her back to awareness. All around her, she could hear Maerina's confused and enraged shouts as the youma vainly tried to find the senshi in the fog.

"Ami?" came the confused whisper as Mercury lightly tapped the brown-haired girl's cheek, trying to keep the green senshi aware.

"It's me." Mercury responded just as quietly, thankful that no one else was around to hear her civilian name.

"Wha hap'end?" the girl slurred out as she blinked her emerald green eyes, trying to bring them back into focus.

"You were hit by Maerina. It looks like you crashed through quite a number of trees along the way too." the blue-haired sailor tried to lighten the mood by laughing weakly as she said this.

"Uh-huh…" the brunette trailed off before closing her eyes sleepily.

"No!" Mercury whispered sharply. "You have a concussion. You can't go to sleep, Jupiter!"

"Merc' shud'up will ya?" the green-clad senshi said before wincing when Mercury pinched her uninjured side harshly. "Ow! That hur'd. "

"Shh!" Mercury whispered as she clamped a gloved hand over Jupiter's mouth when she heard leaves crunching under Maerina's feet nearby. Once the footsteps moved away from the two girls' prone positions, the bluenette hurriedly stood up and bent down to help Jupiter stand as well. "Come on. We need to move somewhere out of the way."

"Lead the way." murmured the brunette as she stumbled to her feet and proceeded to lean heavily against the petite senshi.

"Come on Jupiter. We need to move to cover, my fog is going to disappear any minute." mumbled the blue-haired girl as she stumbled her way into the covering of the trees. Quickly scanning the area with her visor again, she found a large tree that had a hollowed out base. Quickly glancing left and right toward the fog that was slowly evaporating, she ran the fastest she could while carrying her extra baggage.

"You'll be safe here Jupiter." she murmured to the brunette moments later as she squatted down to help the said girl settle down more comfortably on the slightly wet ground. "As long as we stay quiet Maerina won't be able to find us in here."

"_Explosive Hearts on Fire!" _came a sudden shout only yards away from where Mercury had last seen Maerina. With a fierce scream, all of Mercury's remaining fog evaporated causing Mercury to pull both herself and Jupiter deeper into the hollow tree.

"Venus?" came the bleary question as the injured senshi looked around trying to locate the orange senshi. "Where she at, Merc'?"

"She's fighting with Maerina, Jupiter." said the concerned senshi before she made a gesture with her hand and watched as it dipped into her subspace pocket. "Now hold still all right? I'm going to check to see how bad your injuries are."

"Sure." replied the green-senshi slowly before blinking her green eyes at the medical equipment that Mercury was pulling out of her pocket. "Robbed the hospital didn't ya, Ames?"

"No. You know I like being prepared." the bluenette said before she twisted the end of a small flashlight to turn it on. "Okay. I want you to follow my finger, alright? And make sure you follow with your eyes only, keep your head still."

"Got it, Doc." came the reply, accompanied with a yawn. Blinking her eyes a few times, Jupiter then proceeded to follow all of Ami's directions for the next few minutes.

"All right." sighed Mercury finally as she pressed her left earring twice to make her visor disappear. "It seems that your concussion isn't major. You'll be fine in a few hours time as long as you take it easy. Do you hurt anywhere else besides your head?"

"Just the few cuts on my stomach from where I got snagged with that damn harpoon." grumbled out Jupiter irritably. "I hate this youma. She just won't die."

"We'll beat her." reassured Mercury before she grabbed a pair of scissors from her medical supplies. "I'm going to cut away some of your uniform Jupiter, that's the only way I can get to those cuts. Is that all right with you?"

"Go ahead. We already know that every time we transform again, our uniforms are as good as new." pointed out Jupiter.

"Thank goodness for that too." replied the girl as she began cutting away the middle portion of Jupiter's outfit. In only a few moments, almost half of Jupiter's middle portion of her uniform was cut away to reveal two nasty slices in the warrior's skin.

With a wince for the green-clad senshi, Mercury set to making sure the slices didn't need stitches and she then proceeded to wipe the slices gently with a cloth from her subspace pocket, which she had lightly sprayed with some disinfectant before she began wiping. Finishing off the wound, the blue-haired girl then covered the cuts with two large butterfly bandages before wrapping them with gauze -making sure the gauze was tight, yet loose around Jupiter's waist to allow movement.

"All right, Jupiter. Do you have anymore wounds that I can patch up for you?" questioned Mercury as she placed the used medical equipment back into her subspace pocket.

"Nah. I got a number of scratches when I crashed through those trees but that's it. Nothing important." mumbled Jupiter with another yawn.

"They should still be treated with antibiotics so they wouldn't get infected." protested Mercury before she grabbed a can from her many medical supplies. "Did you get the scratches on your arms and legs?"

"Yeah." mumbled the brunette again. "That's it. My suit covered the rest of my body."

"All right. This might sting, so prepare yourself." warned Mercury as she positioned the can above Jupiter's right leg.

"Yeah, yea---Ow!" cried Jupiter as she sprang up from her leaning position against the inner tree trunk. "Jeez, Mercury!"

"I warned you." pointed out Mercury with a frown as she continued to disinfect the scratches. "You just didn't listen."

"Hey! I listened!" protested Jupiter with a frown on her own face as she leaned back down against the tree. "I just wasn't prepared yet."

"Sure you weren't, Jupiter. Nonetheless, you're all bandaged up for now. Make sure you don't do anymore fighting this time around though." warned the blue-haired senshi as she placed all her medical equipment back in her subspace pocket.

"What about Maerina?" came the concerned questioned as Jupiter sat up higher in her leaning position.

"I don't know." Mercury supplied as she scooted away a little from Jupiter to give the taller girl more leg room in the tree trunk. "I don't want to leave you alone in your condition, but Venus needs help."

"Go." urged the brunette with a wave of her hand toward the battle. "I can handle myself. Besides, it's not like anyone could find me out here, especially when it's past 7 o'clock by now."

"Y-you sure?" questioned the bluenette hesitantly before glancing toward the distant sounds of the battle in the last rays of sunlight. "What if you fall unconscious again?"

"I'll be fine, Merc. You did a good job bandaging me up, so don't worry. Venus needs your help."

"_Stunning Whip of Wr-----!" _

As in response to what the green-clad senshi said, both girls heard one of Sailor Venus's battle cries echo throughout the air. As they were listening however, it was suddenly cut off in mid-word before a sickening, crushing sound filled the air followed by two distinct screams of pain.

"Shit." Sailor Jupiter said absently as she listened to the distant battle. She turned to the other senshi beside her worriedly. "Hurry up and go, Merc. You know what happens to Venus when she uses that attack!"

"I know. She falls unconscious every time." Mercury said before she rushed out of the hollowed out tree.

"Hurry up, Merc. It seems you might be our only hope this time." mumbled the emerald senshi before she closed her eyes in exhaustion. "If only Serena was here. She would know what to do."

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'_Why isn't she dieing?' _a golden-haired girl in an orange senshi uniform thought to herself angrily as she leaned against the centerpiece of the fountain she had been thrown into. With a wince, she absently touched her left side -where she had landed on the fountain centerpiece roughly- only for blood to stain through her once pristine white gloves. _'She should just be a weak youma, like all the others.' _

"But she's not." the senshi mumbled out loud to herself as she watched the fountain gain a light pink tint from her blood. With a frustrated shake of her head, the girl's soaked golden hair flung side to side wildly before sticking to her soaked uniform. "She just won't die."

With a great heave, Venus slowly pushed herself to her feet with much effort and began to carefully crawl out of the knee-high fountain. Once she was out of the fountain, Venus glanced down at her injured side to see blood spreading even faster through her uniform, drenched as it was.

'_Can't worry about that now.' _she thought as she walked the few feet to where her chain had been thrown when Maerina grabbed a hold of it. _'Besides, I've had much worse than that before.'_

With a glare on her face as she bent down to pick up the chain, Venus suddenly began to chasten herself for not expecting Maerina to grab the chain during her attack and use it as leverage to throw her into the fountain. _'I should know better. What happened to the great warrior I once prided myself on being?' _

'_She was manipulated, then she ceased to exist after that anymore. That's what happened to the great warrior.' _a voice in the back on Venus's head answered the rhetorical question. Bitterly, the golden-haired girl reached up to wipe away the sudden stinging in her eyes that her thoughts caused.

'_No, now is not the time for those memories. It's time to kill this damn youma.'_ Venus thought to herself as she linked her chain carefully back around her waist and began walking in the direction she had last seen Maerina- the forest of trees.

Walking around as quietly as she could, the lone senshi tried to find Maerina in the forest the park's trees created. But since the sun had fully disappeared down the horizon about five minutes ago, it was almost impossible to see anything that night since it was becoming so dark.

Quickly glancing toward the sky, the golden-haired girl saw that it was indeed a moonless night giving the reason to why it was so dark. As Venus was looking at the customary position of the moon, she could not help but flinch in guilt once more.

"Venus, is that you?" came a whisper before Sailor Mercury appeared from in between some trees. "Ah! There you are, I've been looking everywhere. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, it's me and no, I'm not hurt Mercury. I can't find Maerina though, have you?" questioned the orange-clad senshi as she shook herself out of her thoughts. Absently she touched her injured side, thankful that the moonless night was hiding her wounds. _'I appreciate her concern, but…'_

"No, I haven't seen or heard any signs of her either." replied Mercury before her hand dipped into her subspace pocket. Seconds later, her hand reappeared with her small flashlight in tow. She quickly twisted the end of it and the area between her and Venus was illuminated. "There, that's much better."

"Hmmm." was the only comment from the blonde before she began walking deeper into the trees for a quick look around the area and to hide her wounds from Mercury's sight. "From what I remember, when Maerina grabbed a hold of my heart-link chain and threw me, she was also thrown because of the backlash. So then, where is she?"

"That's what we need to find out." mumbled the blunette before pressing her earring to summon her visor for the second time that night. She quickly scanned the surrounding area for any traces of negative energy but all she found was lingering energy, nothing recent.

"Anything Mercury?" questioned Venus as she came back to watch as Mercury pulled out her mini-computer seconds later. "There's no signs at all through that path to show Maerina's been there, or around here either."

"I can only find lingering traces of her. Nothing recent." came the short reply as Mercury hurriedly typed in more than one long series of code. "I'm doing a sweep of the city now. Hopefully I can find a recent trace of dark energy."

Both senshi were quiet as they impatiently awaited the results of Mercury's search. Venus was ready to begin combing the city herself before a sudden string of beeps caused both girls to hurriedly look at the screen.

"What the hell is going on?" exclaimed Venus as she looked at the screen in shock. "How can Maerina be at the fountain? That's where I was just at!"

"I don't know." mumbled the blue-haired girl. "Let's take a look though."

Venus didn't even hear Mercury's suggestion because she had already begun running back toward the fountain. Breaking through the trees with Mercury only seconds behind her, both senshi watched in amazement as Maerina stepped into the fountain and began to _melt _into the water.

"Maerina!" yelled out Venus as she rushed toward the fountain, gathering energy in her hands as she walked. Within just seconds, both of her hands were radiating golden light and she wasted no time in flinging the energy at Maerina. _"Explosive Hearts on Fire!"_

The explosive hearts didn't even affect Maerina, she simply looked at the rapidly approaching hearts with an arrogant smile on her face. Slowly, the marine youma crossed her scaly blue and green hands over her chest and flung them outwards toward Sailor Mercury and Venus.

Immediately, two of her half-fish half-human creatures appeared to take the blunt of the attack, leaving the remaining hearts to hit the fountain and explode. As the dust cleared, both senshi rushed to the fountain to see no trace of Maerina remaining. The only sign left of her was the echoing of her last message.

"I have more unfinished business sailor losers! Beat you another time!"

"Damn it!" screamed out Sailor Venus as she punched the fountain in her frustration. "What the hell is going on with the Dark Kingdom and this youma?"

"I wish we knew." came a quiet voice and both senshi spun around to see the still injured Jupiter leaning against a tree on the forest line. With a tired smile, Sailor Jupiter disappeared in a flash of green light and Makoto was the one left leaning against the tree trunk.

Quickly Sailor Mercury rushed toward Makoto to check up on her injuries. With two quick scans of her visor and mini-computer, the relieved senshi told Makoto that her health was improving, she would be just fine tomorrow. She would still need to get a good night's sleep however and take it easy for the next few days.

"Where do you think Mars is?" questioned Mercury curiously as she placed her communicator and flashlight back into her subspace pocket. With a single thought, Sailor Mercury disappeared into a flash of blue light and Ami stood in her place once more.

"She -_we_- had some things to take care of." answered Sailor Venus before she also disappeared in a flash of orange light. Minako was left standing in the senshi's position with a pensive frown on her face.

"What did you have to take care of?" questioned Makoto as she leaned against Ami for support.

"I have something to tell you guys." Minako said with a sudden determined glint in her eyes as she ignored Makoto's question. "It's about Serena and where she's _really _been these last few days. And why."

Both Ami and Makoto shared a confused glance before turning their attention toward Minako. As they were sharing their glance, both girls missed the hastily rubbed away tear that had trailed down Minako's cheek.

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As Ami and Makoto were listening to Minako's tale of Luna, Rei's and her own discoveries in dread, across town two intimidating young men were confidently making their way into the Crown Arcade looking for the man codenamed 'T11TMK'.

After their Commander finally allowed them to leave Headquarters, they could not wait to arrive in Tokyo to find _Him_.They both vowed on their honor as two of the best men in the agency that they would not leave Tokyo without completing their mission. It was their duty to do so and they weren't going to abandon that.

Both of the men were so advanced in the agency that they were in command of their own military subdivisions, even at their young ages. The first young man to walk into the arcade was a serious yet flirty and usually fun-loving man with a muscular 6'1" stature around the age of 21 years.

He had short, light blonde hair and light blue eyes that could turn into ice and freeze you in your steps if you angered him. Even while dressed in a simple dark blue tee-shirt, a pair of worn-in jeans, and a faded brown leather jacket, one could not miss the power and demand for respect that radiated off the man. Codenamed 72JTMA, or simply called Jadeite, the man was in charge of the Far Eastern Division based out of Sydney, Australia.

The second man to walk into the arcade was about 20 years old and roughly the same height as Jadeite. While the second man was also a blonde, he's hair was a dirty-blonde and so long that it was kept in a ponytail, leaving his wavy hair to trail down to mid-back.

Even with such long hair, the man did not look feminine in the least. He had a battle-worn face that hinted at seeing much hardships in his young life and a slight muscular body- not as powerful as Jadeite's, but still strong- to show that he had fought well to earn his position in the agency.

Wearing a dark green button up shirt, a pair of black dress pants, glasses that rested on his nose which covered his light green eyes, and carrying a briefcase; the man looked much more professional and sophisticated than the man next to him. Nonetheless he exuded power and a demand for respect as well, his aura however was softened by the immense intelligence that was included into the mix. Codenamed 83ZKR6, but called Zoisite by most, the man was in charge of the European Division based out of England.

With self-assured steps, the two men made their way to the counter where they had spotted who they knew to be T11TMK from the pictures they were sent to identify him with. Waiting in front of the man, they watched as he began wiping off the counter with a blue and white dish rag while whistling. Both men stood in irritable silence for a few minutes waiting for some form of acknowledgment when Jadeite not-so-subtly cleared his throat loudly, making the arcade worker's head snap up sharply.

With wide eyes filled with recognition and anxiety, Motoki stiffly jerked his head in a quick form of salutation and then silently beckoned the men to follow him into the back room. With raised eyebrows at the less-than-formal greeting, the two men pursued the arcade employee's path while glancing around at the remaining cheerful and lively customers in the arcade. Glancing at the clock, they saw it was a quarter past nine o'clock already.

On the way to the back room Motoki silently found and then asked a fellow worker to watch the counter for him so that he could have complete privacy. When the dark haired waiter confirmed that he would watch the counter, Motoki continued to led the two men into the secret room underneath the arcade.

Once the three blondes made their way into the middle of the secret room, Motoki immediately dropped before his superiors into a one-knee kneeling position with his left hand fisted over his heart and his head bowed in the formal salutation of a superior in the agency.

"I greatly apologize for not properly acknowledging you earlier sirs. I thought it to be best that no one become suspicious of my bowing before you or saluting to you in the main room of the arcade." replied the arcade worker in his emotionless voice once again.

"We understand. It would not be in our favor if civilians were to know our business." the cool voice of who Motoki recognized as General Zoisite answered while observing the room with calculating light green eyes. "Please arise T11TMK. There is no need for you to stay in that position any longer."

"Motoki Futuraha, sir." Motoki said as he stood up and brushed some dirt and dust off his clothing.

He watched with blank green eyes as who he knew to be General Jadeite walked around the room looking at everything. More than likely the general was filing away all the weaponry and gadgetry that laid about -not to mention the layout of the room- into his memory by the way his eyes swept carefully across everything, not missing a single detail.

"Excuse me? What do you mean Motoki Futuraha?" questioned Jadeite as he looked up from the computer that Motoki had previously used to contact Headquarters with.

"The name I am going by while in Japan is Motoki Futuraha. It is my civilian name." Motoki responded stiffly. All the power that radiated off the men was leaving him in an uneasy awe, he definitely understood why they held the positions they did in the military now.

"All right Motoki. We cannot stay long but before we leave, I need to tell you our new civilian names." replied Zoisite easily as he saw how anxious Motoki seemed to be.

He adjusted his glasses higher up on the bridge of his nose and then quickly reached into his pocket and withdrew a note card and red pen. Placing his briefcase on one of the tables, he jotted down his and Jadeite's new names and the hotel phone number.

"My new civilian name is Zander Raphael Wynne and Jadeite's name is Jamison Lynton." informed the light green-eyed general as he passed the note card to Motoki. "The hotel's number is also on the card in case you need to contact either of us. We're staying at the Narita International Airport. "

"Just ask the hotel receptionist to connect you to one of our rooms." added the previous-observing Jadeite as he walked over to join Zoisite and Motoki in the conversation. "We will tell the receptionist you have authorized access in reaching either of us, so there will be no delays if you need us."

"Yes sirs." came the rigid response as Motoki placed the note card carefully in apron pocket. "Do you know how long you are staying in Tokyo?"

"Until everything's settled again." replied Jadeite with a pensive frown and tone that caused his companion to glance at him questionably.

"Yes. Everything." repeated Zoisite as he turned away form Jadeite and toward the still silent and rigid Motoki that was watching their interaction. "There is much to do."

"I believe that is all now. Is there anything else that needs to be said?" continued Zoisite before glancing at either man to make sure he hadn't forgotten anything. When both men shook their heads 'no.' he nodded.

"If that is the case, we will not take up anymore of your time Motoki. We simply wanted to inform you that we had made it to Tokyo. Now, I know I am personally exhausted from jetlag and I believe Jadeite is too, so it is best to retire at the hotel. We will return in a few days' time to discuss what we've learned on the various situations but if you learn anything pressing, please call us before then. So _please _be sure not to lose that note card Motoki. Have a nice evening."

With that said, Zoisite picked up his discarded briefcase and nodded toward Motoki, leaving Jadeite to express his farewells as well.

"It was a pleasure meeting you, Motoki. Have a nice night." bid Jadeite with a bow of his head before he followed the rapidly disappearing Zoisite out of the secret room.

Motoki slowly followed the generals out of the secret room and watched mutely as they strode out of the arcade's main doors without a single glance back. Once he was sure that they would not be returning any time soon he relaxed his rigid stance and staggered back into one of the stools in front of the counter.

"Ugh. What have I gotten myself into? And why did the Commander have to send those two?" he mumbled to himself in despair. "Those two could kill me with a single glare if they wanted to or if I screw anything up."

With an audible groan Motoki stood up while rubbing his face tiredly. He needed to find someone that would be willing to cover for him until the arcade closed for the night in another hour or so. He really felt the need to leave early tonight. That ordeal had taken a lot out of him and he was emotionally drained now.

With a brief, weary glance in the direction of the arcade doors Motoki went off in search of the dark-haired waiter from before.

' _What a mess this is turning into. And I know it's only going to get worse as time goes on.' _

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"Hey Zoisite, where's that new information of mine?" a light blonde-haired man in a leather jacket questioned as both he and his companion walked into his hotel room about 15 minutes later. With a appraising look, he saw that the room was decorated very similar to his suite back at Headquarters.

A large bed in shades of dark green and brown sat in the middle of the room and a mahogany coffee table sat a little ways away with two dark green armchairs and a light brown couch surrounding it. There was even a matching breakfast nook seated near the balcony doors. Without even having to look, the light-haired man could guess that the bathroom was decorated very similar to the bedroom.

As he walked into the room to throw his jacket onto his bed, Jadeite saw that the walls were covered in faux wood panels and painted with random leaves, like they were falling from a forest of trees. Everywhere that he looked, the blonde general saw reminders of the outdoors staring back at him.

'_I should really tell the Commander thank you for this. He knew that I would miss the outdoors in this city.' _he thought with a yawn. Turning toward his companion, he saw that the long haired blonde had begun to doze off in one of the armchairs around the coffee table with his feet resting on top of the table. With a frustrated sigh, Jadeite walked over to his friend and shook one of boot-clad feet to wake him back up.

"Where's my information, Zoi?" he asked again. He could barely make out the half -mumbled, half-yawned reply of "briefcase" before Zoisite sleepily reached toward his discarded briefcase that was resting between him and the chair and reached in to pull out a large manila envelope.

The long-haired general only glanced at the envelope to make sure it was labeled 'Jadeite' in his small handwriting before tossing it toward Jadeite with another yawn. Sitting up from his slouched over position and removing his legs from the top of the coffee table, Zoisite then began to sleepily tell Jadeite what was in the envelope.

"Everything's in there Jed. Driver licenses, birth certificates, passports, cash for non-traceable transactions. Things like that. And if we ever need anything else, I can always contact Headquarters to acquire it."

"Like always. You said my name of Jamison Lynton, right?" questioned the light blonde man as he began taking out all his information and spreading it on the coffee table. Finding the aforementioned birth certificate, he began memorizing the information printed on it.

"Correct. Jamison Bryant Lynton to be exact. You're an English-born man raised in Australia. Both parents, no siblings. Traveled a lot growing up with your freelance archaeologist parents and as a result, you enjoy new places. Home-schooled your entire life, excelled at your studies."

"Wish that was true, I hate studying." grumbled the general as he looked for his age and birth date on the documents to make sure they matched. "August 7, 1985; age 21. At least I'm still the same age, just a different birth date."

"Yes, I did the same for myself. It just seemed easier that way. Besides, we'd stay close to _his _age if we kept our ages true." came a slow reply as Zoisite leaned his head against the back of the chair and closed his eyes.

"Yeah. So, what is our reason for being here as Jamison and Zander?" inquired Jadeite as he began putting his information back into the envelope, leaving out the driver's license and some money.

"Exchange students at Tokyo University. You from Australia, me from England." began Zoisite as he opened his eyes again, only to close them in frustration immediately afterwards when he saw Jadeite's darkening face. "No, Jed. We don't have to go to school. I just have everything set up for being Exchange students in case we run into trouble. Anyone asks, just tell them you're a Tokyo University student and if they check, there will be grades and attendance in the system to prove it."

"That's good. I hate traditional schooling. Thank god we learned everything at Headquarters, much better environment." replied Jed with a relieved nod as he placed his new license in his wallet and a few hundred dollars as well.

"Of course you prefer the military schooling system. Mostly because it was more than half-filled with drills and procedures, weapon training, field training, and all that other stuff. And when we did real schooling, we had already been taught a lot of it. Of course we did have those 10,000 years to make up." said Zoisite as he briefly opened an eye to stare at Jed before closing it again.

"Yeah. But subjects like Ancient Terran History -which no one in this day and age knows anymore, I might add- were as easy as pie. All those years and years of drilling and getting that stuff pounded into my head was finally put to use!" laughed Jed as he placed his wallet in his back pocket and also leaned against his own chair.

"Same with English; half-math was new, half-math was not -thank _god _I was allowed to be more military oriented otherwise I would have never passed the math segments- and we instinctively knew the ancient language. Most of my learning problems were in modern subjects- English and other languages and history." continued Jed as he shuttered while thinking about all those late night sessions he suffered through.

"At least for you. I enjoyed learning all that new information, it was interesting to see how us Terrans changed all these years." Zoisite said as he stretched his legs and feet underneath the coffee table. "When I gained my memories, I was curious to see what had happened when we died. You have to admit you were too."

"Yeah, of course I was curious. At the same time though, I didn't want to know. Earth practically started anew because of that last battle. I didn't want to see how much we had lost, how much we still haven't gained back. I still miss the old days, back in Ancient Terra. Everything was the way I liked it, no problems." came the melancholy response as Jadeite shook his head.

"Let's just hope that everything will be settled and we can live like that again. We just need to solve the current problems and continue life. That's all we can do." answered the long-haired general before he stood up to stretch widely. "All right, Jed. I'm going to bed, see you in the morning."

"Night." replied the other man as he watched Zoisite open the door to his joining room and close it with a soft click.

The remaining man stayed there -staring at the door lost in thought- for almost ten minutes before he managed to break loose from the hold his thoughts had and began getting ready for bed.

Throwing back the covers and sheets to his bed a few minutes later, the blonde-haired man blissfully slid into bed with just his boxers on. With a large yawn, he looked at the window into the dark night before settling himself in more comfortably.

'_Another day gone by without any changes.' _he thought to himself sadly before closing his eyes and allowing sleep to finally claim him. _'Yet another day.'_

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5/27/07

Dun! Dun! Dun! What do you guys all think? Maerina still lives, but what the hell is she planning!? And what does Venus mean, manipulated!? By who?! And Venus is telling Mercury and Jupiter about Serena's real whereabouts, what are they going to do?!

In case you're wondering, they are getting the same version that you all learned. (The dreams, being a traitor, etc.)

The generals have finally arrived! Those poor guys their appearance was originally in chapter _3_ and look at it now, it's chapter _7_. Wow, I don't know if that's a good sign or not though. I'm hoping good, it means I made the story more detailed at the very least.

Either way, I'm surprised that none of you guys guessed it was them. Everyone sure tried to guess who the commander was! But are your guesses right? Hehehehe.

The generals though, did I do a good job showing their work faces (all serious with Motoki) and their real faces (when they were talking in the hotel room)? Did that seem real to all you guys? Did you all understand why they did that? Please tell me if you don't!

Oh! Before I forget, Dark Kingdom Zoi**c**ite is spelled with a _**c**_ and the secret-headquarters Zoi**s**ite is spelled with an _**s**_. It's to help me and all you guys keep everything straight. I know I will get confused later on when I'm talking about the Zois/cites. But now, hopefully everything will be straight. -nod-

Alright just to clear some thing up with the generals and their appearance. _**No**_**, they are not the Dark Kingdom generals or in alliance with them. It's not revealed whether or not they're good or evil yet however (as in against the senshi and Tuxedo Mask or not). Yes, there will be some problems when the senshi see Jadeite. **Remember, Zoicite has shown up but only to Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask so the other's don't know about him. **And yes, they are in alliance with Motoki and in Tokyo -at least partially- for Darien; but you don't know what they want with him yet. And yes, they do have their memories of the past and when they 'awoke' they were trained at HQ. And no, it's not revealed about whether they were Endymion's guardians or not. They were terrans though, as said by Zoisite. **

Hmmm… I think that's it concerning the generals. If there is anything else that you want to know, just ask me and I will answer them to the best of my abilities. (No asking for what they want with Darien or anything like that though!)

And yes, yes. I know it's been over a month and I'm _really _sorry. _Really_. My life threatened to burn me at the stake and when I didn't listen to it, it screwed with my laptop and caused the battery pack to start malfunctioning. (No joke! It's like burning hot right now and I don't understand why. Let's just hope it's not like my previous one and blows up.)

To make it up though, the chapter is really long. And I wanted to add even more! But unfortunately, it didn't all fit and I didn't want to make you all read like 25 pages at once. That's too long, even for me. I hope this will suffice for now though.

All right, two more things to say and then I'll head off to the reviews. **One, do you guys want a time chart or something for everything that's been happening so far? **If enough of you want one, then I'll post it in the next chap or so. It would just give a brief summary of the chapters and what days they were on. Kind of like a recap.

**Second, how old do I seem through my writing?**Yes, it is a very odd question but it's important to me. I want to know if I'm mature, immature, etc in my writing so I can work on it and improve.

**I want to say thank you to all those that reviewed this time around. **It does mean _so _much to me.

**Skye668: **Thank you for the compliment. .

**Aleric: **Yup. It is ironic that Darien is the suspicious one regarding the dreams. Hehe. I did want him to be strong in my story, I guess you could say. He's always so wimpy. ( And yes, Minako. She is such a big mystery to everyone. Just who side is she going to be on when everything is going to go down? And yes, the argument that she had with Motoki is a big part of what she is doing. Hehe. **But remember the phrase: Not everything is what it seems. **

**Double G: **Hmmm… will they regret hurting Serena like that? Unfortunately, we don't know how Serena is doing yet. That's coming soon though!

**ffgirlmoonie: **What do you mean? You mean Serena being the moon princess and Minako knowing that? If so, then yeah. **I will tell all you guys that Minako knows Sere is the Moon princess. **

**MikiUsako90: **Yeah, my version of Rei is pretty horrible. But there's a reason for it!

**Linwe: **Ironic that you wanted more Ami and Makoto action in the story. Hahaa. Here you are! And I didn't even read the reviews until after their portion was written out! Thank you so much for the compliments. Starry eyed A rare gem…wow….

**DarkAngelmi818: **Hmm… kick-ass action. If I remember correctly…someone's ass is gonna get kicked for sure in one of the next like 3 chapters. Hehehe.

**Caytlyn Rose**: Thank you so much for pointing that out! I fixed it a.s.a.p. God, I didn't even realize I did that. I guess that's what I get for changing things so much.

**mystic soilder: **Thank you so much for the review. And here is the next chapter for your enjoyment. (I hope at least!)

**moonbunnyprincess: Yes, Minako **_**does **_**have full memories of the Silver Millennium but things do get fuzzy from time to time. **And yes, I couldn't resist adding Motoki as a warrior! It's like another reviewer said, he's so overlooked. And yes, Serena will go through some torment (I think you mean Serena at least) soon. Like she isn't already though. If you don't understand something, please tell me and I'll help you out as much as I can. Thank you so much!

All right, I think that's it. Woah, that's one long chapter. Damn. Oh well, here's the 7th chapter everyone! Hope you like it!


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

Note: I just want to say that this is my first fanfic story. I would greatly appreciate reviews and constructive criticism. Please NO flames. Despite popular belief there is a difference between the two and flames can be very hurtful things. Just thought I should point that out.

**For those that did not read the A/N and the responses to the reviews at the end of my last chapter: **_**READ THEM.**_ They had a lot of information that is important to the story. Also, they did have some of the information that a few of you reviewers asked for; like how much Minako remembers.

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As he walked into the Crown Arcade Gaming Center, a tall raven-haired man slowly swept his ocean blue eyes across the area shortly. With a deep sigh that went unnoticed by himself, he was once again disappointed at the lack of a certain blonde-haired teenager in the establishment.

'_Where is that girl?' _he thought to himself irritably. _'It's been five days already!'_

The certain girl Darien was talking about was one Serena Tsukino and he had not seen her since Monday, when he happened to glance over to where her and her friends hung out and saw her pouring over a textbook. Much to his misfortune, it was now already Saturday and he had still not even heard a word or seen a glimpse of the odangoed-girl since that Monday.

And as the days passed Darien learned just how much Serena's absence gave him a strange sense of loss. So much of a loss that he made finally reigned in his feelings and decided to question Motoki and find out if he knew what had happened to Serena.

As the blue-eyed man seated himself onto one of the barstools and waited for Motoki to appear and give him a coffee, he thought back to the Tuesday that Serena first didn't show up and all his sorrows began.

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When he woke up that Tuesday morning, Darien thought it was going to be an yet another ordinary day. Getting up early as he normally did, he then took a forty-five minute jog around and through the park, and then headed home to take a shower and gather his belongings for school.

After he completed that portion of his routine, the college student usually headed to the arcade to get a morning cup of coffee and grab a quick morning meal while having a brief conversation with Motoki Futuraha. Something always came before he could get to the arcade however and that was the inevitable collision with Odango and the argument that always followed.

On that particular day, Darien made his way to the collision spot -about a block and a half away from the Crown Arcade- and strained his ears for Odango's normal screeching voice complaining that she was going to be late so he could prepare himself for the impact and fight that immediately followed her voice.

Strangely enough, the raven-haired man heard nothing. Not a single familiar screech or pained wail that signified Serena was in the area. Confused -and strangely disappointed- that Serena was more late than usual, he then proceeded to wait at the collision corner for almost fifteen minutes. Just to chasten Serena for being later than normal, nothing more; in no way was he worried about her or anything.

However Serena never arrived at all. At that point, Darien simply thought that either Serena was sick or she had gotten a ride to school and then continued on his way to his own school because it was going to start in ten minutes.

Thinking back to that particular moment, Darien realized that was his biggest mistake that day, of the week really. He assumed nothing was wrong when Serena never appeared at the collision spot and he disregarded the feeling in his gut that told him something was wrong because of that. He knew from the previous months that Serena hardly ever got sick and she never got a ride anywhere, just like she was never early. Serena always preferred to walk anywhere, or in the case of getting to school- run.

The blonde had once said, during an unusual conversation when they were actually civil to each other (of course it was after Motoki had gotten tired of their fighting one day and had said he would ban both of them from the arcade if they didn't get along for the day and have one conversation without any insults), that she loved the feel of the sun beating down on her and the freshness that nature brought with it. She said it helped her relax to just sit down and enjoy everything nature had to offer.

Darien agreed with her readily; as he mentioned before he has a very strange connection to Earth and therefore enjoyed it immensely. Of course he didn't mention his strange connection to Earth to Serena, but he did tell her that he also shared her passion for nature. Stunned, Serena had not responded to the man's statement and that was the end of one of their rare civil conversations.

Even though Darien knew the facts that Serena never got sick and walked to school, he had ignored his instincts that said something was wrong and that it was somehow connected to the odango-haired girl. If he had only followed his feelings then maybe he wouldn't be worrying over Serena and her condition now. Or receiving those odd feelings in his gut and psyche every so often that told him Serena was being hurt by someone throughout the week.

Those feelings were enough for Darien to transform into Tuxedo Mask two or three times throughout the week when they were strong enough to cause him actual pain, like when Sailor Moon transformed. No matter how long or how hard he searched though, the feelings only led him to dead ends and it was enough to cause him to worry much more with each passing day.

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"Hey, Dare. How are you doing?" came a sudden cheerful voice that brought Darien out of his upsetting thoughts.

'_Miserable. I can't stand not knowing where Serena is and I still don't understand why I even care.'_ the blue-eyed man thought distractedly before shaking his head and looking at the blonde-haired man that was placing a coffee on the counter for Darien and starting to wipe the counter off with a clean rag.

Noticing that Motoki was distracted, Darien started to slowly scrutinize the man secretly. Between the strange looks and emotions that flashed through Motoki's eyes from time to time when he watched Darien when he believed the said man wasn't looking, and the bizarre conversation with the golden-haired woman from the previous Saturday, Darien was not sure where Motoki stood in the friend department anymore.

As it was, Darien now knew there was definitely more than meets the eye with Motoki, he wasn't a simple arcade worker and part-time student. What he was, Darien did not know yet, but that simply made him extremely cautious in their conversations now.

"I'm doing alright. A little tired is all." Darien finally answered hesitantly before taking a sip of the coffee.

"Some neighbors keeping you up?" Motoki questioned concerned with a frown as he stopped wiping the counter down. "Remember you can always complain to management if you need to."

"I know. It's nothing like that though, all those finals at school are keeping me up late at night studying." Darien replied as he relaxed slightly. "And I haven't been able to get a lot of sleep because of that."

"Darien," the blonde man began exasperated as he leaned in front of the black-haired man across the counter. "You seriously need to take a break one day. Have fun once in your life."

"Yeah, yeah." he replied uncaringly with a roll of his eyes. _'It's not likely I will get a break anytime soon. Not with school, work, and not to mention the youma fights. And now with all this worrying over Serena.' _

"Seriously Darien. All work and no play makes Darien a dull boy." the arcade worker said with mock-serious before shaking his head exasperated as a grin threatened to unfurl on his face.

"Ha, ha. That's so funny." came the sarcastic reply. "I can see how much you enjoy making me laugh."

"Please, like anyone can make you laugh Mr. Stoneface." Motoki retorted with a laugh to show he was only joking. Suddenly, a pensive look came to the blonde's face before he smiled.

"That is, anyone _but _our oh-so-dear friend Serena. She's the only person I've ever seen to get more than one genuine smile and laugh out of you in one visit. Oh _woe _is me! Not even I- your _best _friend!- can get you to laugh like she can." he finished out theatrically.

Ignoring the quip at his expense, Darien finally saw the opening he needed to get to the root of his visit.

"Say Motoki, where has Serena been? She hasn't been at the arcade all week." Darien questioned bluntly as he looked at the arcade worker firmly, silently daring the said man to lie to him.

"I was wondering when you would finally ask me." mused Motoki to himself with a smile. "I knew it would drive you crazy that Serena hasn't been around lately."

"I'm just curious." Darien said as he readily defended himself from the subtle implications he could detect in Motoki's reply.

"Sure, sure. Anyways, I asked Makoto - you know the tall brunette that hangs around with Serena- if she knew where Serena was. It was the strangest thing really. Makoto said that Serena never showed up at school Tuesday and that night she went to Serena's house with chicken soup because she assumed Serena was sick. It turns out that Serena left for Kyoto to visit some relatives Monday night. Makoto and the others were baffled, Serena never told them she was leaving."

"Hmmm….. That _is _really odd. It's not like Serena to not tell anyone she was planning to leave. Usually she would rub that fact in my face, saying she would be escaping me for awhile." Darien replied as he considered what Motoki said. _' That just can't be true. Otherwise I wouldn't have all those feelings about Serena being hurt. I may run into dead ends every time but I _know _Serena is still in Tokyo, she has to be.'_

"You're telling me." Motoi replied as he stood up from his leaning position and stretched. "Remember her vacation a few months ago? She spent the whole week beforehand floating on air because she was, and I quote, 'finally escaping your torture, you big-jerk!' unquote. Then when her brother broke his arm and her family couldn't go on vacation, she just about cried."

'_It just doesn't make any sense.'_ Darien thought with a furrowed brow as he ignored Motoki's talking for the time being. _'I know Serena. If she had been planning to leave, she would have told at least _one _person immediately. And even if she had to leave suddenly, she would have called her friends right away to tell them that she had left. Something just doesn't add up with that story, which means that my feelings really were right; someone's been hurting Serena lately.' _

"Thanks for telling me Motoki." Darien said distractedly. Reaching out with a blind hand, he lifted his coffee to his mouth and drained the last of it. "All right, I'm going to go back home now. I have some more work I want to finish before the day ends. As it is, it's already 5 o'clock."

"Alright, Dare. Make sure you remember my advice though. All work and no play makes Darien a dull boy." the blonde said with a joyous laugh and a wave.

Rolling his eyes in annoyance, Darien placed a few dollars on the counter and bid Motoki a good-bye before heading toward the exit. As he left the arcade and entered a large crowd that was walking in the sidewalk, he barely missed the two young men that were determinedly striding their way toward the arcade from the opposite direction he was leaving in.

Because he did not see them, he completely missed how the one man's PDA he was fiddling with blazed with a green light before emitting a series of beeps, causing the two men to release startled yells. He did not, however, miss their shouts as they frantically searched through the crowd hopelessly.

"Endymion!"

"That name..." he murmured to himself as he stopped on the sidewalk briefly before brushing off the feeling of familiarity that washed over him. With a shake of his head, he calmly continued on his way back to his apartment. His thoughts not on the familiar name now, but on the girl he strangely missed and her possible whereabouts.

"Where are you Serena?"

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"Oh, Serena." whispered a golden-haired girl sadly as she walked into the room of her apartment that served as the 'captive room' a few blocks away from the Crown Arcade. "What has Rei done to you now?"

"N-no.." whispered the prone girl that laid on the battered bed that rested against the far side of the wall. Minako watched as the blonde released a gasp and she twisted away from an invisible phantom.

"Serena?" questioned Minako concerned as she rushed over to bed, gasping as she caught sight of the large hand-shaped burn marks that adorned Serena's upper arms.

She quickly grasped the handcuffs that held Serena to the bed and chanted a few words, relieved when the disappeared from sight.

"Oh my god." she murmured as she brought her hand up to her lips before gingerly taking Serena's arm in her hands and brushing over the wounds carefully. "Rei went too far this time but…."

'_But, I can't do anything. I'm sorry Serena.' _she thought as she felt her eyes mist up with guilt-induced tears. "So, _so _sorry Serena."

"No!" came the sudden sob from Serena that caused Minako to release her arm in surprise. Tears began gathering in the injured girl's closed eyes before they began to stream down her face. "Rei, stop it!"

"Oomph!" cried Minako as a sudden flinging arm hit her in the stomach. With a wince, she ducked the other arm that was aimed toward her face.

"Shh. Serena, it's okay. It's me, Minako." whispered the golden-haired girl as she tried to stop the said girl's flinging arms and legs from injuring herself anymore, not to mention her own golden-haired self. "_Minako_, not Rei."

"Come on Serena. It's all right. I'm not here to hurt you." coaxed Minako as she finally climbed on top of the bed to pin Serena flinging limbs with her own limps.

Within only the first few seconds, Minako realized that it was incredibly hard to pin down a panicking, injured girl without injuring the girl more.

"M-minako?" came the whisper as Serena finally opened her eyes and blinked a few times to bring her vision into focus.

"Yeah. It's me." came the equally quiet response before Minako released a relieved sigh when Serena stopped struggling.

"Minako! Thank goodness it's you. I was so afraid it was Rei again." sobbed the girl as she pulled Minako down and continued to cry into the girl's chest before releasing a scream when she jousted the wounds on her back.

"Serena!?" exclaimed Minako urgently before she crawled off the blonde girl. She watched as Serena turned over crying harder than she had been before. With a terrified and horrified gasp, she watched as blood began soaking through the uniform shirt Serena was still wearing, adding to the blood that was already there.

"Shit!" she exclaimed before rushing into her bathroom to grab a few hand towels. Within a few seconds she was back to Serena's now-still but continuously crying form and began trying to clean up the blood with the towels.

All the while she was soaking up the blood, Minako tried to calm Serena back down but it was of no use. Serena continued to cry since the pain was so unbearable.

"It's all right, Serena. Rei and Luna left back to Rei's temple awhile ago. They left me to watch over you tonight. It's just you and me for tonight, no Rei, no Luna, no one to hurt you, all right?" murmured Minako as she took off Serena's uniform shirt, careful not to rip it off so the others wouldn't know she had tried to help Serena. That was something she had been forbidden to do by Luna and the fact was reinforced constantly by Rei. _'Never help that traitor! Injured or otherwise!'_

"R-rei…" mumbled Serena as she finally quieted down a few minutes later with only a few sniffles and gasps left here and there.

"She's not here." answered back Minako as she threw the bloodied towels into a trashcan, assuming Serena was still worried Rei was there.

"No, why does Rei hate me so much?" questioned Serena sadly as she sniffled a few times and buried her face deeper into the dirtied comforter.

"Hmmm." was Minako's only reply as she laid down beside Serena and began to smooth the younger girl's hair back to sooth her to sleep faster. She smiled slightly when Serena snuggled up to her, like a small child would a mother.

'_Am I doing the right thing in all this?'_ Minako thought to herself as she continued to smooth back Serena hair, even after Serena fell asleep. Almost 15 minutes later, she untangled herself from Serena's sleeping form before glancing down at the girl with pity. _'I sure hope I am.'_

"Sweet dreams Serena, one of us needs to have some sometime." she murmured before she walked into the bathroom to look for her first aid kit so she could begin to treat Serena's wounds.

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Unlike what Minako hoped however, Serena's dreams were not peaceful. They were far from it in fact because she was remembering what had happened only hours before, when Rei had given Serena her latest interrogation.

In a sense of dread and slight panic, Serena had watched as the handle of the bedroom door turned before the door was opened to reveal Sailor Mar's form.

With a cold smile on her part, Rei had been happy to see that Serena was finally awake. It was becoming rarer for the girl to remain conscious because of her wounds.

"Well. It's good to see that your awake." smiled Sailor Mars as she stalked closer to Serena's bed. With a determined glint in her eyes, she seated herself at the edge of the bed.

"Well. Is today the day that you're going to admit to your crimes?" she asked with a smirk, drawing forth Sailor Venus's heart-link chain that she had 'borrowed'. With a sudden urge to hit the ground with the whip for intimidation, she flicked her wrist. She smiled when she heard the resounding snap echo throughout the room.

"I _didn't _do anything!" insisted a petite blonde-haired girl frantically as she rattled the handcuffs that were attaching her to the bed. With a sniffle, she wiped away the tears that were beginning to trail down her face with her shoulders because, while the handcuffs did extend, it was only for a few extra inches.

' _When will she finally believe me?'_ Serena thought to herself miserably as she looked at her comrade through tear-stained eyes. _'It's been almost a week and we go through this every time I'm conscious!'_

"_Serena!__Stop lying!_ Luna herself remembers you abandoning the Moon Kingdom with the Dark Kingdom generals!" retorted the enraged senshi as she clenched her white-gloved encased hands around the heart-link chain as she stood up in a fury and frustration. _'I'm sick of this! It's been a week already!'_

"Then she must be remembering someone else, because it wasn't me!" replied Serena between sobs as her shoulders began to shake with her effort of trying to suppress them.

"Stop crying already!" yelled Mars before she flung the whip expertly to wrap around Serena's shoulders.

"Ahh!" exclaimed Serena as she could feel the chain tighten around her shoulders, instinctively knowing that it would leave heart imprints in her skin. She couldn't help the sobs that escaped from her mouth faster.

"I said stop crying!" came Mar's shout as she glared at the girl furiously.

When Serena did not stop crying, Rei stalked up to the girl and grasped the smaller girl's upper arms tightly before shaking her. In her rage Rei didn't pay attention to how flames leaped from her hands and attacked the blonde-haired girl.

"Ahhh! Rei, stop it! You're burning me!" sobbed back Serena as she tried to wiggle out of Rei's grip. Tears started to stream down her face faster as she felt the flames attack her arms fiercely and Rei tighten her grasp, sure to leave more hand sized bruises on her already abused body.

"Not until you tell me the truth!" retorted Rei as she released Serena and threw her down back on the bed. With a sudden snarl, she unwrapped the chain from Serena's shoulders and snapped Serena's back with it before beginning to pace away. When Serena released a ear-piercing scream, she smiled as a sudden red haze began to overtake her.

"I am!" screamed back Serena as she looked pleadingly at the raven-haired senshi's back as she paced away from Serena. "I didn't do anything to betray you or the Moon Kingdom or the princess! I'm loyal to all of you!"

"Liar!" came the scream but Rei still did not turn around. "Admit to what you've done! You betrayed us in the Silver Millennium and even now! You don't stay away from Tuxedo Mask when he more than likely is an enemy, meaning you're helping _him_, not _us _and you helped that youma the other day! Admit it!"

"No! I'm not an enemy and neither is Tuxedo Mask, so leave him out of this!" denied Serena again, as she tried to keep from leaning on her burned back without injuring her upper arms anymore.

"Ahhh!" yelled Sailor Mars enraged as she finally turned back toward Serena, earning a startled gasp from the other as she did so. "Stop it!"

"Rei…. your eyes…w-what?" whispered Serena confused as she stared into Rei's face with large, confused blue eyes. _'What in the world is going on with you Rei?'_

"Shut up Serena!" yelled Rei as she gathered power in her hand as she punched Serena as hard as she could in the jaw causing Serena to scream in shock and pain.

Even being hit or falling unconscious did not stop Serena from seeing those terrible eyes. Those terrible, glaring scarlet-colored eyes that looked at her with utter hatred. Those eyes that froze her to the very core of her being.

Those eyes continued to haunt her in her dreams, even when their owner fell unconscious as well, fainting right onto the ground for Luna to find an hour later.

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"I've been thinking Luna," began a raven-haired girl calmly as she laid back in her bed about the same time that Minako was beginning to treat Serena's wounds.

Lifting her hands to adjust the cold compress that laid there, they abandoned the broach the girl had been previously fiddling with. "Serena's been at Minako's for a week and neither Minako or I can get Serena to admit to anything."

"What is your point, Rei?" came the testy voice of a black cat as she jumped on top of Rei's red and black bed and stopped to look at Rei with her piercing burgundy eyes.

Luna was still incredibly enraged at how she had found Sailor Mars lying on the floor earlier that day. Unconscious, disoriented, and having no memory of what had happened that would cause her to have a large bruise and bump on her forehead. So, both she and Mars came out with the only solution they could- Serena somehow managed to do it.

"I think we should move Serena here, to the temple. Minako's been acting very strangely every time she goes near Serena and I'm afraid her resolve is weakening." Rei replied, not bothering to beat around the bush with the annoyed guardian.

"Hmmm... perhaps you are right." Luna sighed thoughtfully as she stretched before seating herself down next to Rei. "I have noticed her odd behavior as well but I have been so preoccupied with the situation that I thought nothing of it."

"But how will we convince Minako to let us move Serena to my house?" Rei questioned as settled her hand on Luna's fur and began to pet the cat behind the ears.

"I think she'll have no problem with it honestly. If anything, we can say we didn't want to burden her apartment anymore with both of us being here almost constantly and we thought it was best to move Serena to your house because it had more room." Luna practically purred out as she relished in her head rub.

"True. Now, how would we keep my grandfather from not noticing our new houseguest? Because, eventually, I'm pretty sure that he'd notice a girl tied up in the house." retorted Rei with a furrowed brow before she winced and pressed the cold compress tighter against her wound.

"There is an old ritual I can recall that summons a holding room." Luna suggested hesitantly. "It would be able to hide Serena spiritually, mentally, and physically- no one will be able to find or detect her."

"That would be perfect! Serena might be more likely to admit to anything if she's cut off from the world. Right now though, she still denies she has betrayed the senshi or the princess at any moment in time." Rei grumbled irritably. _'Damn girl.'_

"There is a problem with the summoning of the room however. I do not have enough power to create it by myself." Luna admitted grudgingly. "Even with your help, we still would not have enough power to summon the room."

"Where could we find more power?" Rei pondered to herself as she adjusted her legs so they wouldn't fall asleep.

As she was moving them, she was startled when they touched cold metal causing a shiver run up her spine. Carefully she sat up and looked at the abandoned broach that laid innocently beside her legs. Picking it up slowly, she considered how much power it would have.

"Hey Luna." she said as she turned the object over and over in her hands before showing it to the cat. "Could we use Serena's broach? It should have all kinds of power in it because of the transformation phase."

"Why didn't I think of that?" Luna questioned herself as she realized that the broach would have plenty of power to help them summon the room, with even more power to spare if needed.

"So it'll work?" Rei questioned curiously.

"It would be the perfect thing actually." Luna said as her burgundy eyes flashed happily. "We only need a few more things and then we would be able to summon the room with no problem."

"What would we need?" Rei questioned as she laid herself back on the bed with a sigh and gave the broach to Luna before picking up her cold compress and lying it back against her head.

"The most important thing we'll need is a good night's sleep, so we'll have to summon the room tomorrow. That is, if it's alright with you?" Luna questioned as stared at the broach, not truly seeing it in front of her, since she was so lost in her thoughts. "I don't want to injure you more than necessary, so we could wait longer if you want."

"No, tomorrow is just fine. I would prefer it to be earlier even still but since it's not possible, tomorrow is the next best thing." Rei agreed as she closed her eyes.

"Good. The next few things we'll need are a bowl of cherry tree leaves and bark and your transformation pen. Besides those two objects, I don't believe we'll need anything else. Just make sure you don't loose Serena's broach, that is the most important ingredient." warned Luna sternly.

"No problem. What time should we start tomorrow?"

"Early, so we can transport Serena late tomorrow night. When everyone else is sleeping." was the cat's only reply before she jumped down from the bed. "Now, I'm going to check on a few things before we begin. Make sure you get a good night's sleep Rei."

"I will, Luna." Rei replied, but it fell on deaf ears as the cat walked out of the bedroom doors and began making her way down the hundreds of steps that lead to the street below.

Once Rei was sure that Luna was out of the house and back into the streets below, she slowly sat up and walked to her large window and leaned against the glass. She looked above to see the moon hanging overhead in the darkened sky. With a determined glint in her eyes, she whispered to the moon, "Soon, I will get Serena to admit what she has done. She cannot get away with her crimes. I promise you that."

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6/18/07 Posted: 6/25/07

All right, here's another chapter done and delivered. We finally see what has happened during the time that Serena has been held captive. We even see Darien's side of the story and how much he misses her, even if he doesn't understand why. And he even transformed into Tuxie to look for her! Awww!

Rei's been pretty awful, huh? More than awful really, more like a real bitch. And freaky too, with that weird red eye thing going on. But never fear people, there is a reason for her behavior! And no, it's not like jealousy or anything like that. It something unexpected.

We also see that Minako isn't heartless. She's trying to keep Serena alive after that awful session with Rei. And what was up with the Generals, what would they have done if they managed to find Darien in that crowd? And Darien feels that the name Endymion is familiar, is that good or bad sign!? Oh no!

Another _**BIG**_ thank you for all you reviews, not to mention you readers. You are making this story possible, at least my ability to post it possible. I might have just made the story for my self if no one seemed to like it. o0. But now others get to read it! Yay! I love sharing my ideas with others and now I get to share my own little Sailor Moon universe.

Tiger Celeste


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

Note: I just want to say that this is my first fanfic story. I would greatly appreciate reviews and constructive criticism. Please NO flames. Despite popular belief there is a difference between the two and flames can be very hurtful things. Just thought I should point that out.

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As Luna had asked, Rei got a good night's sleep that night. Bright and early the next morning, the raven-haired priestess had begun meditating to make sure that she was in the best form; both mentally and physically.

After she was done meditating for almost an hour, Rei went to the large cherry trees that lined the temple's grounds and stared at them silently as she thought. When Luna had asked for the cherry tree's leaves and bark last night, Rei hadn't been surprised.

'_Definitely not surprised.' _she thought with a fond smile. _' These trees are some of the oldest in Japan. Besides that, they have powerful holy powers running through their stems since they're growing on such strong spiritual grounds.'_

"With their added power, we'll be able to summon this room without a doubt." she mumbled to herself as she stared at the ancient trees. With a sigh and shake of her head, Rei then began the task of gathering the tree bark and leaves that Luna had requested before placing them in a bowl for later use.

After Rei finished a few minutes later, she lovingly patted the trees before going back inside. Once there, she grabbed her transformation pen and Serena's broach before waiting patiently on her bed for Luna to arrive. The raven-haired girl had almost begun to doze off when Luna came in through her window almost fifteen minutes later, breathing heavily.

"Sorry I was late Rei." heaved out Luna as she stopped in front of Rei's bed, trying to calm her breathing back down.

"That's alright Luna, I understand." replied Rei as she watched the cat with suspicious eyes. _'It's unusual for her to be late. She's the one always complaining that we should be on time more. I wonder what happened.' _

A sudden noise in the hallway caused Rei to look at the door sharply. _'Oh no. The door isn't locked.' _She quickly ran to the door and locked it before leaning against the doorframe.

She listened in anticipation to see if anyone was going to come to her room or even near it but when no one did, she breathed a sigh of relief. _'Good. It wouldn't be wise for Grandpa to walk in on all this. It's a good thing I remembered that the door wasn't locked.'_

"Have you got everything I requested?" questioned the red-eyed cat once her breathing was back to normal. "We should start as soon as we can."

"Hmm?" questioned Rei preoccupied before she finally registered Luna's words and turned around. "Oh! Yes, I got the leaves and bark, Serena's broach, my pen, and the good night's sleep. That's everything."

"Good, good." purred out Luna happily as she watched Rei walk back to her bed and grab the bowl and transformation pen and broach. "Before we begin, you need to transform Rei."

"Got it!" nodded Mars before she placed the items on the ground and called out her transformation phase. Instantly columns of fire danced and encircled Rei's form, leaving the priestess dressed in a white body suit and a red skirt, red heels enclosed on her feet, white gloves covered her arms and hands, a red bow rested on her chest and another on her lower back, and a tiara with a ruby jewel rested on her forehead.

"All right Mars." began Luna with a serious tone. "I need you to place Serena's broach right against the outside of the bowl before setting the bowl on fire. I want you to then concentrate your hardest on giving your power to the fire. I know it sounds very strange, but it will work. It's important that you use every once of power you can though, otherwise there might not be enough power to open the room."

"I understand Luna. I give my power to the Great Fire to see visions all the time." came the quiet reply as Mars adjusted Serena's transformation broach at a better position outside the bowl. Taking a calming breath, she then called forth her powers to cause a column of fire to erupt from her hands and set the bark and leaves inside the bowl on fire.

Making sure it was all settled so far, the girl then seated herself in a meditative pose a few feet away from the blazing bowl, but still facing toward it. Suddenly the words "Mars Power!" ripped through her mouth before she even realized it. The raven-haired girl then opened her eyes to stare into the fire, revealing an odd red sheen to them that was the same color of the ruby on her tiara that had begun pulsing.

Luna herself did not see any of this because as soon as Rei had set the bowl on fire, she moved a foot away from the bowl, making sure to keep the slight glimpses of Serena's broach in sight at all time. It was important to make sure that she included the broach in her next step or else she wouldn't get the added boast of power they needed.

Taking a deep breath, the crescent moon on the cat's forehead blazed to life before it shot out into the bowl. Luna watched as the beam divided into two, one beam shooting into the fire itself, the other beam hitting the matching crescent beam on Serena's broach. The end result was for the bowl to gain an ominous silver glow, adding to the fire's own glow.

Luna then began to chant in a low, ancient, and indescribable language; concentrating her hardest on forming the impenetrable room. Luna's strange chant lasted for almost ten minutes before she opened her eyes, seeing that the fire was finally dieing down.

"Mars!" she called out now suddenly tired. With another yell of Sailor Mar's name, the senshi came out of her trance, giving Luna a weary look as she did so. "Give all your remaining power to the fire! We're almost done!"

With a mighty yell, Mars obeyed what Luna had asked, fighting the urge to yawn as she did so. The red-clad girl threw her hands toward the fire, releasing every ounce of power she had left. "Agghhhh! Mars Power!"

Suddenly the power releasing from her body took on form. It changed from a strange red glow into raging streams of fire, surging toward the bowl at a lightning fast pace. Some of the individual streams did not go straight toward the bowl however. Some of the streams erupted into gigantic towers, blazing straight toward the ceiling and against the walls, causing the room to transform into a fire zone.

Even though the fire raged against certain parts of the room, the walls and everything else it touched was still perfectly fine. Not a scorch mark or flame in sight on any of the walls or items. Both Sailor Mars and Luna stared around in amazement before a sudden wave of power crashed into them from the bowl, throwing them into the different portions of the now de-transformed Rei's wall.

Both were too exhausted to move up, so they watched from their prone positions as an abrupt white light pulsed once on the far side of the wall before an ancient doorway appeared. The door itself was a pure white color and decorated with the different phases of the moon in silver. Looking closer, they spotted a weird form of writing along the matching white doorframe in a silvery-gold color.

They couldn't see much else of the door however, because with almost simultaneous yawns, the sailor scout and guardian only had enough time to make sure that the door looked secure and would stay together before they drifted off into a much needed reenergizing sleep. Both were relieved at knowing their plan had been a success.

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"What are we going to do?" asked a quiet voice as a blue-haired girl rested her head against a white kitchen counter. She watched with haunted blue eyes as a brunette bustled about the kitchen, placing two batches of cookies on the counter in front of her before walking to the other side of the kitchen to finish mixing what Ami knew to be a cake batter.

"I don't know Ames." sighed the tall brunette as she glanced at the girl with her own haunted eyes, hers a vivid emerald green however. With a glare, she turned back to her batter and began mixing it with more vigor; not even paying attention to the yellow batter that began to dot her pink and light green apron that read _'Kiss my cookies!'_. "What Minako said can't be true though. Serena's _not _a traitor."

"We've already established that fact Makoto." pointed at Ami with a frustrated sigh as she lifted up her head, only to rest it on her chin a moment later. With a frown on her face, she played with the hemline of the light blue blouse she was wearing; a habit she had recently picked up. "What I meant was, what are we going to do about how they are treating this situation?"

"You mean how they are holding Serena like a traitor!?" yelled out Makoto as she practically slammed the bowl onto her counter, causing some of the loose batter globs to hit her on the face and apron. She didn't pay any mind to them in her anger however. "And how they won't even let us into Minako's apartment to check up on her!"

"Yeah that." came the quiet response before the girl picked up one of the chocolate chip cookies on front of her and began chewing on it mindlessly. Out of habit, she automatically brushed off the crumbs that fell on her dark blue floor-length cotton skirt that had ice-blue colored flowers running over it in a strange pattern.

"I'll tell you what I sure as hell would like to do!" yelled out Makoto before she picked up her bowl and poured it into a mold. "I'd like to shove their accusations up where the sun doesn't shine!"

"Makoto!" reprimanded Ami as she dropped the cookie she had just about been to take another bite of. "Those are our friends, our teammates we're talking about!"

"Are they really, Amy?" retorted the enraged girl as she placed the mold into the oven and slammed the door shut before turning blazing emerald eyes at her friend. "Do friends or teammates keep things like accusations against a common friend from you? Or even go so far as to kidnap said friend and do who knows what with her! We haven't even seen them for days, much less even heard of anything from Serena for a week!"

"Well, no. But--!" tried to placate the girl. _'Minako, Luna, and even Rei should have a better reason than what Minako said they were doing. It's too horrid!'_

"But nothing Ami. Stop justifying their actions, _please_." continued Makoto, much calmer this time. "I know that you're just trying to see them in the same light you always have, but there isn't anything justified about what they did or are doing. I mean, if you believed someone to be a traitor, would you go about it the same way they did. Kidnapping the person at night because of a _cat's _dreams? Based on something that happened _10,00 years _ago, if it did happen at that!"

"No. But this isn't something like talking negatively about you behind your back! This is about betraying the Princess, the entire Alliance!"

"I understand that. This could be a big deal _if _it was true. This is Serena they're saying is a traitor though. Do you really see her leaving with the Dark Kingdom generals before the Moon Kingdom collapsed?" questioned Makoto somberly as she gazed at the smaller girl. _' You need to see the truth Ami. They aren't friends anymore, no matter how much you hope and wish they are.'_

"No, of course not." answered the blue-haired genius quietly. "It's Serena. Sweet, loveable, klutzy Serena that befriended us all when no one else wanted to. We both know that."

"Exactly. Do you really think that a betrayer would go about defending me -someone she didn't even _know_ at the time-against all those rumors when I first transferred to our school? The ones that said I was kicked out of my old school because I had beaten someone up?" questioned the tall girl as she leaned against the counter in front of Ami and began munching on her own cookie.

"Well, the rumors _were _true, at least partially. You were not the crazy-karate-girl everyone said you were, but you _did _beat someone up. They just didn't know you did it to save a little kid." pointed out Ami with a small smile that caused her friend to laugh. "But no, I don't think a betrayer would do that. The same way that one wouldn't go about befriending me when everyone else mocked my grades or my unusual hair color."

"See? Serena isn't a traitor Ami. And even though I don't remember her from 10,000 years ago, I know that Serena is always Serena. She couldn't have possibly betrayed anyone then either. She's too good hearted." replied Makoto as she brushed her pink and green apron off, only succeeding in spreading the flour and batter further down on her jeans and onto the sleeves of her long-sleeve forest green tee-shirt.

"You do know that we are back to where we started, right Makoto? We already agreed on all this when Minako first told us what they were doing." pointed out the blue-haired girl with a shake of her head.

"Yeah, I know. It helps to keep all that in mind though. None of what Minako, Rei, or Luna are doing is justified." nodded the brunette. "It's just not right; not right at _all_."

"I know. What does it matter if Luna had dreams about Serena leaving with the generals? Dreams are nothing more than our thoughts manifested into images. They're not something guaranteed true." replied Ami with her own nod. "And I believe Serena when she told us that she left with Tuxedo Mask that one fight to engage in her own fight with a new Dark Kingdom general. Serena isn't someone who would abandon us for no reason."

"Yeah! And who cares that Serena helps Tuxedo Mask during battles? We all know that she likes him. Besides would Tuxie really save Moon all those times if he was on the Dark Kingdom's side?" grinned Makoto, the smiling reaching her eyes.

"Well, he _could_." began the ever logical girl.

"Ami." groaned out the brunette, the smile disappearing from her face.

"You didn't let me finish, Makoto." frowned Ami. "I was going to say that while it is possible he could be working for the Dark Kingdom. It's _not _likely though. All he does is help destroy the youmas, save Sailor Moon, and fight the generals; that doesn't say 'I work for the Dark Kingdom, die Sailor Senshi!' to me. I think he just wants to help. I mean he has supernatural powers, why not put them to good use?"

"Does he really have that much power?" asked Makoto thoughtfully. "He has those super-jumping abilities to get him and Sailor Moon out of the way, but we all have those. Then he fights with those roses of his and an occasional fight when he blocks blows with his cane. And he has that uncanny ability to find us no matter where we are. That's all I've ever seen though, nothing else."

"Me too, but I believe he has more powers. He just might not want to use them, or even _know _about them. Luna told us that our powers come from the Moon Kingdom but we don't know where his come from. Maybe because of the nature of his powers, they manifest differently." suggested Ami with a shrug.

"Or he just might not have any powers like us." grinned the brunette as she played with the oven mitt lying down next to her hands before pulling it on.

"My point though," Ami began as she shook her head. "is that, I think he just wants to help."

"I think so too, Ames." smiled Makoto before she went to the oven to check on her cake. As she was making sure that it was cooking well, she suddenly stopped in her tracks before turning back to Ami with a grin unfurling on her face. "I just had a brilliant idea!"

"And what would that be?" asked Ami as she bit into a peanut butter cookie. "Mmm. These are even better than the chocolate chip cookies, Makoto!"

"Thanks but this isn't about the cookies Ames. I have an idea about what we should do." grinned Makoto in what Ami could describe as nothing more than evil. "We're gonna break Serena out tonight!"

"What!?" came the shout that echoed about the room, causing Makoto's grin to widen even further.

"All right. Here's what I was thinking." began the brunette before her friend began yelling at her for such a half-baked idea. "You and I are going to go to Minako's really late tonight, like 1 AM. They are all sure to be asleep by then, no matter if they take turns staying up or not."

"This is ludicrous!" protested Ami as she shook her head in the negative frantically.

"No, it isn't Ami. Do you really want Serena, our _best _friend, to stay there for something that she more than likely didn't do?" Makoto asked with a stern frown as she walked up to the counter and peered at her friend suspiciously. "Do you Ames?"

"No, of course not!" replied Ami in an uncharacteristic snappy tone. _'I can't believe that Makoto would think I would want Serena to stay there!_'

With a crease in her forehead, Ami continued frantically, "Serena doesn't deserve to stay in that place any longer. But you--and---I--we--we _can't!_"

"We can do it, girl. We _can_. It just takes some planning, that's all." encouraged the brunette. "We can work it all out today. You're not going anywhere and neither am I. We got all day to figure everything out."

"All right. We'll do it. Serena deserves her freedom." conceded Ami with a frown after a few moments of tense silence. Taking a deep breath, she blew it all out in one 'whoosh'. _"But_, we have to make sure that we have a completely solid plan. Neither you nor I have enough power to take on Sailor Venus _and _Sailor Mars if they work together to try and stop us."

"True, we'd be outmatched. I was thinking though that you could use your fog for extra measure." suggested the girl in the apron as she bit into a chocolate chip cookie with her free-hand, the other still enclosed in her oven mitt.

"Not possible." pointed out the genius with a frown as she began thinking of a plan. "The temperature of my fog is quite cold. If we want them to stay asleep while we get Serena, then we must be completely guarded over what we do. It's better to use the smallest amount of power we can. If worse comes to worse, or it's the only way, we'll use them."

"Fine. I can do that." agreed Makoto with a sigh as she finished her cookie. "What else could we do then?"

"The balcony." came the quiet reply. With a gesture of her hand, Ami reached into her subspace pocket to pull out her Mercury computer before typing in some information. "We will have a higher rate of succession if we do a sneak attack. It's almost 87 less if we use a direct approach."

"What if the balcony door is locked?" pointed out Makoto with her own frown as she pulled off her oven mitt and tossed it onto the counter. "We wouldn't be able to break the door and enter, too much noise."

"I can freeze the door handle which will cause the handle to become incredibly fragile. We could either shatter it quietly or pull it right off. Either way, it should not be too much noise. That's the only way I can think of to get inside without causing major damage to the structure. If it's not locked, we'll just walk in. Simple as that." replied the blue-haired girl as she continued to gather information on her Mercury computer.

"So we just sneak into the apartment, find Serena, and run?" asked Makoto disbelieving. _'This sounds much too good to be true. Too easy.' _"What if they wake up while we are trying to find her?"

"That's what I'm doing right now. I'm making sure that I have all six -including Luna- of our external influences on the space around us that we leave behind." supplied the blue-haired girl as she briefly glanced at her friend before looking back at her computer.

"Huh?" questioned the brunette as she tried to understand the foreign language her friend was saying. "What are our external influences on whatever you said?"

"Umm… it's our energy signatures, I guess you can say. Everyone is different in their energy signatures or their auras, I believe Rei would call them. It's the way people feel to others and the imprint we leave on everything."

"Like fingerprints?" questioned Makoto as she continued to look at her friend baffled.

"In a way, yes. No one has the same aura as someone else, like no one has the same fingerprints; not even identical twins. Everyone leaves behind a trace of themselves that lasts for however long in ratio to how long they spent in one relative location. For example when walking down the street, we all leave behind our energy signatures but since we are only in the same position for a few seconds, it disappears just as quickly." informed the blue-haired genius.

"Uhh, so everyone leaves behind a little bit of themselves, and the longer they stayed in one place, the stronger the energy signature and the longer it lasts?" Makoto asked as she blinked at her friend. _'I think I get it now…'_

"Exactly!" cheered Ami as she beamed at her friend.

"But how can these energy signatures help us?"

"Since Luna, Minako, Rei, and more importantly, Serena have all spent a lot of time in Minako's apartment, their energy signatures will be incredibly accurate."

"Oh!" cried Makoto as she realized what Ami was getting at. "With their signatures we can figure out if they are in the apartment or not. And if not, their energy can tell us how long it has been since they were there. And since they've spent a lot of time there, it has a really high probability of being right."

"Yes. And more importantly, we can figure out what route to take if they are in the vicinity." Ami said with a pleased smile when she realized that her friend understood her planning.

"So you could do an energy reading before we walk inside to see who's in there." pointed out Makoto as she leaned against her counter. "That way we can prepare for action."

"You go it!" cheered Ami as she sat down her computer and closed the lid with a quiet 'snap'. "And since I have all of our energy signatures stored away, the plan is accomplishable."

"That's a brilliant plan Ames! We will be able to get Serena out without any surprises now!" cheered Makoto with a laugh.

"Hold on Serena, we're coming girl!" the brunette shouted as she pumped her fist into the air, silently hoping that Serena would somehow hear her.

'_Hold on, Sere.'_ was Ami's only thought before she and Makoto began smoothing over their planning, making sure to think of everything before they set out early tomorrow morning.

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"Ugh!" came a frustrated shout before the sound of smashing glass echoed throughout Jadeite's outdoors-styled hotel room. "Why can't we find him!?"

"You do know that we're going to have to pay for that vase, right Jed?" pointed out a blonde-haired man dressed in a dark green tee shirt and a pair of black-dyed jeans. His light green eyes glanced at the broken vase that lay at the base of the wall before releasing a frustrated growl.

He glanced at his friend before leaning back more firmly in the overstuffed dark green chair he was sitting in. With an almost unconscious movement, he flicked his dirty blonde shoulder-length hair, which was done up in it's customary ponytail, over his shoulder in an agitated manner.

His companion, a young man wearing a red tee-shirt with a black dragon coiling around it and a pair of worn-out blue jeans only glared in response. His eyes, a normally pale blue color, were icy with annoyance before he looked away with a frustrated groan.

"Oh come on, Zoi! You know that you are as frustrated as I am!" he complained as he ran his hand through his short, light blonde-hair before letting himself fall into the brown couch.

"Of course I am. Give him credit though, Jed. When he doesn't want to be found, he is almost impossible to find." remarked Zoisite as he placed his sock-clad feet up on the coffee table in front of him. "Always been that way and always will."

"I know. Damn man." grumbled out Jadeite as he also placed his feet on the table, his were sock-less however.

"I don't even see why you're complaining so much, Jed." pointed out Zoisite as he looked at his comrade thoughtfully. "We've only looked for him twice."

"And we've missed him both times!" countered the short-haired man as he idly picked up his sunglasses that were resting on the coffee table and began fiddling with them.

"Jed, one of those times wasn't even his normal visiting time." responded Zoisite with a shake of his head. "Then the second time yesterday, we barely missed him. We both heard how my palm pilot reacted."

"Why did it react that way anyways?" questioned Jadeite as he stopped playing with the sunglasses and looked at his friend questionably. "I never did ask. We just went looking for him without a second thought."

"I don't even know." confessed Zoisite with a wince. "It reacted to _something_, but I don't know what. I do know that it did detect Endymion's presence without a doubt though, I _felt _it. I just don't know if it will detect it again, so we still might be on our own looking for him."

With a loud clatter as he dropped his sunglasses, Jadeite looked at his friend seriously as something finally dawned on him. "Zoi, this is the second time we've mentioned him by name."

"You're right." murmured Zoisite as he looked at his friend shocked. "When did this happen? It's been like a silent agreement between everyone that we won't mention his name."

"Yeah." came the slow reply. "I always felt that if we finally called him by name that we would be filled with false hope. It's been so long and I didn't want to get my hopes up for nothing every time I mentioned his name."

"Me too. But every time I said his name, I also always thought about the final battle. About everything that happened. About what we lost."

Both men where silent for a long time as they both relived the final moments of the battle that ended everything. Every hope and dream they ever had of their future ended that day. Their silence lasted for ten unnerving minutes before it was broken by Zoisite's soft spoken question.

"Do you remember what he looks like anymore?"

"Vaguely." admitted Jed before he looked up at his friend, expecting shock at his answer. To his complete surprise though, he say understanding in his friend's green eyes.

"Sometimes his image is so clear, huh?" mused Zoisite with a bittersweet smile on his part. With a shake of his head, he looked up at the ceiling like it would have all the answers he wished to know. Of course it didn't though, so he contented himself with continuing to talk with his friend. "Sometimes it seems like he's right in front of me, both of us staring out at a battlefield."

"But the image disappears as quickly as it comes?" questioned Jadeite, his tone suggested it was more of a fact though. With his own bittersweet expression, he leaned his head on the back of the couch and closed his eyes, trying to draw forth the image of Endymion.

"Uh-huh. Just for those short moments I can see him so clearly. But after it disappears I can never recall his complete image."

"You can only remember how dark his hair was or how sharp the color of his eyes were. They same way you can remember how vivid the sky was back then or how crisp smelling the water was." supplied Jadeite with a glower.

"Exactly. I try to gather the images together to form his picture, but it never seems right." replied the green-eyed man as he glanced over at his friend. "There's always something off, something that isn't right."

"But you can remember how beautiful the palace was in detail or where you last saw your favorite sword?" questioned the light blue-eyed man as he opened his eyes and lifted his head to stare at his friend.

"Frustrates you doesn't it? We've spent years looking for him but we can't even remember his face."

"Of course it does. Who wouldn't it bother, Zoi?" commented Jadeite as he looked past his friend to stare at the sun that was beginning to set. "It's like looking for a ghost."

Zoisite followed his friend with calculating eyes as the blue jean-clad man got up and walked over to the balcony doors to lean against them. Jadeite was completely silent as he looked at the sun that was beginning to disappear below the towering buildings of Tokyo.

With a carefully blank face, Zoisite got up as well a few moments later and walked over to join Jadeite and leaned against the doors too. He didn't even bother looking over at the light-blonde haired man before he asked the question that had been bothering him.

"Is that why you're reluctant to look for him? Because you can't remember what he looks like?"

"Hmm. You always were too observant, you know." commented Jadeite as he glanced at his friend from the corner of his eye. "You would have made a good shrink."

"Like I don't have enough problems of my own to deal with." began Zoisite before he started laughing. "And besides that, I have to listen to your problems. That's too much, even for a certified shrink."

"Oh shut up." complained Jadeite as he smacked Zoisite sharply in the back of the head.

"All right, all right." came the reply as Zoisite placed his hands in a surrender position before rubbing his wounded head. "Seriously though, is that why you're reluctant to find him?"

"Yeah." came the drawled out word as Jadeite watched the ant-sized people walk on the sidewalks below. "It's been so long and I'm afraid that this man isn't Endymion. We're only going on what we remember of him, not what he actually looks like. I'm afraid that this man just looks like what we remember and that we'll cause unnecessary problems for him."

"Hey, relax Jed." came the soft spoken words. "You're supposed to be the one laughing and teasing, not me. I'm the worrier remember? Don't worry, it's him. It _has _to be."

"And if it's not?" countered Jadeite as he glared at his friend before looking back at the people below. "What will we do then?"

"We'll just keep looking, like we've been doing. I have a strong feeling that it is him though. We saw how my palm pilot reacted, and even Motoki is sure it's him based on what we've told him about Endymion. I can _feel _it, we're close so keep your hope, okay? It's _him_."

"You're right. I have a feeling it's him too, I guess I just don't want to set myself up for nothing." conceded Jadeite with a loud sigh as he ran his hand through his hair as she turned toward his friend. "Let's stop talking about Endymion for a while. All right?"

"Agreed." came the quick reply as Zoisite tried to stifle a yawn. "I'm exhausted and it's barely 8 o'clock at that!"

A sudden laughing sound drew Zoisite's attention away from thoughts of his nice, soft bed and toward the laughing Jadeite. With a glower on his face, he stared at the man like he was crazy. "Me being tired isn't that funny."

"It's not that." wheezed out the man as he tried to stop laughing. "It's that it just occurred to me that Motoki doesn't even know who he has been looking for and keeping an eye over. He doesn't even know his real name."

"That's right." was Zoisite's reply as he his eyes widened in shock. "Motoki never even met Endymion back then."

"No, no. Think about who Endymion is _really_. Motoki wouldn't believe it. He just thinks this man is a college student that has been his best friend for about a year, that's it. All he knows is that we've been looking for him but he hasn't even bothered asking why."

"Yeah. Motoki doesn't realize that if this man is Endymion -which he _has _to be- then he's a trained soldier, a warrior, a royal, a murderer." laughed Zoisite before he realized what he had said and became still. "A _murderer_."

"A murderer." Jadeite repeated as he quickly sobered up from his laughing and started solemnly at Zoisite. "And that's why we're here."

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7/13/07

All right everyone! Another chapter out and delivered. I have to say that the generals' conversation above is probably more important than anyone realizes. (Even me!)

But yes, I want to get a few things straight, for those who even _**bother **_to read my much thought out A/Ns.

**So first, Ami is not siding with Minako, Rei, and Luna's plot**. Ami is just trying to see them as she always has- friends, comrades, fellow senshi, etc. She wants to believe that they are justified in their way of going about with this 'Serena's a traitor, let's kidnap her!' plan. But as shown above, she knows that Rei, Luna, and Minako are in the wrong. Which is way she and Makoto developed their plan to kidnap Sere back. Hehehe!! Well it work though….

As for the generals' conversation, I bet you are all confused. Were they talking about him in a good or bad manner? Or was it mixed? But yes, we learn that Endymion is a _**murderer **_and that is why the generals, ultimately, are in Tokyo. What are the generals going to do when they finally catch up with him? And more importantly just who did he kill?

During their conversation we also learn more important facts. One, they aren't exactly sure what Endymion even looks like. **FYI, like Minako they remember all of the Silver Millennium (from their point of view!) but get confused on the details because it's been so long ago. Everything is hazy at best. But they remember the least important things, the trivial, as seen above. **

Oh yes, on the note of Tokyo. Yes, I _**know **_that Tokyo is a very crowded, busy city; no matter the time or day. But in my own little universe, Tokyo is like dead silent at night, hardly anyone about. But yes, like all cities there are still people about. As seen with the drunken men Rei and Luna were almost caught by.

All right, I think that's it. But you guys got an early chapter! Yeah!

Tiger Celeste


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

Note: I just want to say that this is my first fanfic story. I would greatly appreciate reviews and constructive criticism. Please NO flames. Despite popular belief there is a difference between the two and flames can be very hurtful things. Just thought I should point that out.

I have to say that I love all your guys' reviews! They mean so _so _much to me. All you authors out there know what I mean, there's nothing more rewarding than someone saying that they love your story. Hehe. I gotta say that I pretty much have everyone so confused. You all might kill me for what I have planned up.

**Finally the chapter -or scene really- that inspired the story! **You'll see what I mean later on, a certain confrontation is what I am talking about. Because it is the chapter that inspired the story, **I really **_**really **_**want feedback -meaning reviews!-, on this chapter. **Pretty please people!

Also, _**please **_read the A/N at the bottom of this chapter! I'll be clearing a few things up, pointing things out, etc.

Here's an extremely early chapter for you all. Enjoy!

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When Rei woke up hours later, the room was pitch black and silent. The priestess quickly cast bleary eyes around the room, trying to find her alarm clock. She finally saw the glaring red numbers on her nightstand and blinked a few times to bring them into focus.

'_11:45 , perfect.' _she thought with a smile. '_Time to get Serena.'_

Slowly the raven-haired girl began looking for her feline companion so they could leave. She found Luna moments later on the other side of the room. The cat was standing in front of the newly created door, studying it intently.

"Hey Luna." Rei greeted with a yawn as she got up and stretched, which caused her to automatically wince. _'Ouch. Sleeping on the floor was definitely not fun.'_

"Rei." greeted Luna in a preoccupied voice as she continued to stare at the strange writing on the door's frame. '_This is the old language.' _she thought as her eyes widened in shock. '_I remember seeing it and reading it, even writing it! But I don't have the faintest idea of how to understand it anymore. How strange.'_

"Are you ready to get Serena?" questioned the priestess as she walked over to Luna. As she was talking, she momentarily knocked Luna out of her thoughts of why she could remember something, yet not at the same time. "It's getting closer to midnight."

"Yes, I'm ready to go Rei. There should not be too many people about and if there are they should be easily avoided." confirmed Luna without even bothering to look at the girl. '_I will need to investigate the language of the Moon Kingdom later.'_

"Right, that's what I was just going to say. So, do you think that the door is stable?" came the question as Rei hesitantly knocked on the door and held her breath. When nothing happened, she knocked on it harder. "Well, it seems incredibly sturdy at least."

"Yes it is. I looked it over before you woke. It is going to hold it's shape without a problem." assured Luna before she urged Rei to transform so they could travel faster.

"All right then." cheered Rei with a smile once she was transformed into the fire and spirit Senshi. "Time to get Serena!"

With that said, Luna jumped onto Sailor Mars's shoulders and they raced off into the night, heading for Minako's apartment.

On the way there, Luna and Rei almost caught the attention of two late night stranglers. Luckily for them, the two men were too incredibly drunk and after glancing strangely in Sailor Mars's and Luna's direction at the entrance of an alley, they continued to stagger down the street without a word.

'W_hew. That was close.' _Mars thought to herself as she breathed a sigh of relief. '_Better stay closer to the rooftops from now on.'_

The claws that were digging their way into Mars's shoulder caused the girl to realize that Luna also shared with her thoughts. With a wince, the red-clad senshi took off again, jumping up the nearest fire escapes and onto an apartment building's roof.

It was fifteen minutes later before Rei and Luna arrived on Minako's balcony. Quietly sliding the door open, Rei walked into the room with Luna following shortly behind. Rei wasn't even in the room more than 10 feet before she stopped in her tracks, appalled.

There, sprawled out and sleeping peacefully on the couch was Minako; _not _Sailor Venus. That fact was what angered Rei the most, not to mention that Minako was asleep in the first place. Both Rei and Minako had agreed that if they were alone with Serena, that they would be transformed. It was a safety precaution in case Serena had tried to escape or anything else of that nature.

'_That's one strike against Minako._' the senshi thought irritatedly as she walked deeper into Minako's front room.

The next thing Mars saw caused her murderous fury. All around Minako's form was evidence of Minako's evening; a careless evening at that. On the floor sat a huge tube of half-melted and half-eaten ice cream, with the spoon still dangling in between Minako's hand and the tub.

In Minako's other hand was the remote to her television, which still displayed the title menu of a romance movie. At the other foot of the couch was a stack of DVDs, some still opened with their discs hanging out, signifying that they had been played already.

'_Strike two. That's a day's worth of movies.'_ Mars thought with a murderous frown as she looked down at Minako. _'Damn woman. I knew we shouldn't have trusted her alone with Serena.' _

"Mars." came a sharp whisper that caused the senshi to stop glaring at Minako and look toward Luna. "We'll deal with Minako's incompetence later. Let's get Serena and leave."

With a silent nod the fire senshi led Luna toward Minako's guest room that had been housing Serena. Both breathed sighs of relief when they saw that the door was still closed.

'_Surprise, surprise.' _Mars thought darkly as she walked into the room to find Serena sleeping on her bed still. _'I wouldn't have been surprised if Minako had just let Serena go.'_

"Come on, Mars." came the quiet urging as Luna rushed past the priestess's legs. "We shouldn't waste anymore time."

"Got it." came the girl's equally quiet response as she walked over to Serena's bed. When she reached the bed she finally took notice of something vital. Serena was sleeping peacefully with her hands under her chin; something that shouldn't be possible. She had been released from her handcuffs and Rei knew by who.

"Strike three." growled Mars as she glared toward Minako's unknowing form in the living room. "You're out Minako."

"Hmm." came a quiet mumble that startled Mars and Luna. Both watched as Serena rubbed her face into her pillow before slowly opened her eyes and blinking a few times. The blonde didn't get much farther than spotting Sailor Mars and releasing a gasp before Mars dealt a harsh blow to the girl's head, efficiently knocking her unconscious.

"_Rei!" _came Luna's enraged whisper. "Knocking Serena out like that wasn't part of the plan. She's already in awful shape as it is! We need her alive, you know!"

"So!?" bit out Rei in her own enraged whisper. "What does it matter if I knock out the idiot for a while? It isn't going to kill her!"

"Rei." came Luna's resigned voice, accompanied with a sigh. "Just pick up Serena so we can go. We're wasting too much time."

"Fine, fine. Ruin all my fun why don't you." the red senshi muttered as she roughly slung the unconscious girl over her shoulder and walked back to the balcony doors. With only another glare in Minako's direction, Rei then jumped out into the night; leaving behind a frowning Luna to make her own way back to the temple.

Neither the soldier nor the guardian paid attention to the blood that began seeping through Serena's uniform shirt and the hidden bandages underneath as they made their way back to the shrine.

The hidden bandages were the only evidence left of Minako and Serena's time together. Neither Rei nor Luna would ever know that Minako had taken great care in bandaging Serena as best as she could and putting healing balm on Serena's abused back.

Nor would they know that Minako had gone to great lengths in trying to hide the bandages, going so far as to remove some of the excess bandages and placing one of her own undershirts underneath Serena's uniform shirt she had washed. The undershirt was the only way to ensure that the remaining bandages wouldn't be seen automatically underneath the white shirt, trying to delay both Rei and Luna's wrath.

They would also never know that Minako had allowed Serena to eat her heart's content, a huge feat considering that Serena had hardly anything to eat in the time she had been there. And they would also never know how many tears Minako had shed as she watched in silence as Serena continually had nightmares of Rei.

Most importantly though, they would never know how many times Minako had had to stop herself from soothing the girl and releasing her to freedom.

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Around the same time that Rei and Luna were walking into Serena's room at Minako's apartment and discovering the extent of the later girl's neglect of her responsibilities, a few blocks away a young man was pacing around his own apartment.

"Something's going to happen." Darien mumbled to himself before he stopped in front of his wall-sized window and stared out. His ocean-blue eyes could not see anything of importance no matter how hard he looked however. What he saw was only the typical quiet life of late night Tokyo, which caused him to release something akin to a growl.

Running a frustrated hand through his raven-colored hair, Darien resumed his pace around the apartment, faster this time. "But the question is, _what _is going to happen."

Darien was not completely clueless however, no matter how hopeless he felt. It wasn't even ten minutes ago that he had woken up to a strange urgent feeling in his psyche and another in the pit of his stomach. Feelings he had learned were associated with Serena as of late.

Odd feelings themselves we're an unusual occurrence to the black-haired college student. Every time Sailor Moon transformed and headed toward a battle, he was hit with a painful feeling mixed with urgency -how painful and urgent is was determined on how injured and scared Sailor Moon was- that lasted until he could transform into his alter-ego of Tuxedo Mask. Once transformed, there would be a pull in the direction Sailor Moon was in, leading him to the youma battles where he would, more often than not, save the blonde warrior.

Then there were the feelings Darien had been receiving lately. 'W_hich _are _strangely similar to those I receive when Sailor Moon is in need._' Darien thought as he paused briefly before continuing in his trek. _'Stop. It's all in your head. You're just worried about Odango, that's all.'_

He couldn't stop the stray, rebellious thought as he continued to mull over the urgent feelings though. '_Let's just hope that the amount of urgency and pain I receive isn't related to how scared or hurt Serena is; like how it is with Sailor Moon. That could only mean trouble. It's bad enough that I know Serena has been hurt, otherwise I wouldn't of have the feelings in the first place. But if she's as hurt as bad as I think…. '_

Back to the recent feelings though, only a few times had they been strong enough to cause actual pain. And all those times, when he followed the link that tugged him in one direction or another, Darien had been led to dead-ends. No matter how hard he looked or how many times he retraced his steps, he hadn't been able to find anything useful from his searches.

'_But these feelings are stronger.' _Darien thought with a frown on his face as he glanced out at the unchanging Tokyo scenery. '_They don't have that…hovering quality all the others did. This time, these feelings are more urgent. It's like they're trying to tell me more.'_

Usually Darien's feelings were only urgent, making him uneasy and causing him to worry for Serena more as time went on and there hadn't been any signs of her. They were always hovering over the edge of his mind, always there but never of any real help; elusive in their hints.

The feelings he woke up with though, there were more urgent than the normal ones. This time, they were actually trying to push him somewhere, instead of the usual pulling sensation. Wherever they were trying to lead Darien was uncertain however, they were just to chaotic to make sense of. If the raven-haired man let his instincts lead him, there was no telling how many dead-ends he would run into.

"That's it. I can't stand waiting here for something to happen." the man suddenly decided as he stopped pacing. "Whatever's going to happen has to do with Serena. That's enough information for me. I don't care how many dead-ends I run into right now."

Just as Darien was going to flick of his wrist and call forth his transformation rose, he suddenly doubled over it extreme pain, grasping his stomach and head alternately. He didn't even notice how he began to sink down to the ground in his pain, his legs no longer able to handle his weight.

"God." he rasped out as he tried to hold his stomach and head with both hands at the same time. '_It feels like my insides are being twisted inside out while being placed on hot coal.'_

Trying to blink past the darkness that was threatening to consume his vision, Darien hurriedly flicked his wrist and let his transformation's golden light wash over him. With an instant sign of relief, the intense pain faded away, only leaving behind a dull throb and a simultaneous urgent pulling and pushing sensation from his heart.

"I sure as hell am going to get behind this. I'm not going to return home until I find Serena." The newly transformed Tuxedo Mask swore to himself, not even fully realizing the sheer determination and concern that radiated from his vow.

Without another thought, Tuxedo Mask raced out of his balcony doors and with a few jumps made his way atop the apartment buildings. Pausing only a few seconds to home in on the direction he was being pulled and pushed in, he dashed off into the night.

It was ten minutes later that he spotted his previously unknown destination- the Cherry Hill Temple. With brows furrowed, Darien tried to recall how he knew the name of the temple. He knew he had never been there before.

'_Hmm. Odango's crazy friend, that's where I've heard it! The one who is always batting her eyes at me.' _the tuxedo-glad man thought with a grimace. _'What's her name….R-something….Rei; that's it! I remember Odango saying that's where she and the others go for their study sessions.' _He paused momentarily in his thoughts to roll his eyes as a smile started to unfurl on his face, even in his somber condition. '_Right. Study sessions. More like gossip sessions.' _

When Tuxedo Mask began to stealthily making his way up the steps, his smile fell off his face as he began to wonder why he was being led to Rei's temple. '_Serena couldn't have been there the whole time, could she have? I was never led in this direction before. And more importantly, wouldn't Rei have said something if Serena was here?'_

With a sudden murderous look entering his eyes, the tuxedo-clad man hoped for Rei's sake that Serena hadn't been there the whole time. Faster and much angrier this time, the superhero continued up the shrine steps. Tuxedo Mask was only five feet away from the half-way mark of the shrine's steps when he saw something that answered the elusive question of where Serena was.

There, calmly making her way up the steps was Sailor Mars. That in itself was a strange occurrence, but what caused the man to narrow his eyes in suspicion and rage was what was thrown carelessly over her shoulder. An odango-haired girl wearing a very familiar school uniform.

'_What the…' _Tuxedo Mask began before he was distracted by a red flash of light from Sailor Mars' direction. The shocked man watched in horror as the red light disappeared, revealing Rei calmly continuing her way to her home. He watched as the raven-haired girl hiked up Serena on her shoulder like she was simply a bag of rice as she walked faster up the steps, taking two at a time.

'_Did I just see what I thought I did?' _the man thought to himself as he stopped dead in his tracks. He was tempted to reach up underneath his mask and rub his eyes to make sure he wasn't seeing things. '_Rei is Sailor Mars? Well, I guess that would explain their matching explosive attitudes, at least what I've seen of them.'_

What finally snapped the man out of his stupor was the pained groan that came from Serena's form and how Rei blissfully ignored it as she continued on her way. Studying Rei closer, Darien saw that she continued to walk with a peaceful smile on her face, happy even. In no way was she showing concern or remorse in the way she was carrying her supposedly friend.

'_She did this.' _Tuxedo Mask realized as his eyes widened in shock before narrowing in rage. '_That's the only explanation to her behavior. If she didn't do it then she would be more careful with Serena. Not to mention she shouldn't be so peaceful looking since one of her friends is hanging over her shoulder, obviously hurt pretty damn bad .'_

Tuxedo Mask quickly brought his scanning to Serena to see how badly she was injured. What he saw caused him to grind his teeth together so he wouldn't start voicing his rather expletive thoughts and threats. He watched as Serena shifted slightly in her sleep, revealing more of her battered face and the cuts in her bloodied uniform.

Narrowing his ocean-blue eyes even further, the man studied Serena more closely. All around Serena's body he saw signs of abuse. He saw some scratches, many bruises shaped like fingers, and lots of cuts throughout the rips in her bloodied uniform.

'_What the fuck?_' Tuxedo Mask questioned himself, not even caring about his language. '_Why would Rei, who is Sailor Mars, abuse Serena like this? She had better have a damn good explanation. Even that won't save her though._'

It was another pained groan from the odango that snapped the angered man's attention back into focus. '_Damn it. I don't have time for this. I'll deal with what I just saw after I get Serena back. Hang on Odango, I'll kill you if you die on me._'

With that, Tuxedo Mask began to dash up the steps and call out Rei's name. He didn't get much farther than a few steps and opening his mouth for the yell before his world began spinning and darkness was all he knew.

----------------------------------------------------------------

As Rei was just about to walk the few remaining feet that led to her home's front door, she suddenly heard an enraged shout behind her.

"_Unhand my wife right this instant! I said __**stop damn it!**__" _

The raven-haired priestess thought nothing of it and continued on her way. It was probably just a kidnapper or something on the streets below. She knew that it wasn't rare for sounds to carry up from the street below when it was as quiet as it was in the early mornings.

'_Besides'_, Rei thought with a smile. _'I have more important things to do. Like putting this traitor in her new holding cell. Then after that I can finally get some sleep. It's a good thing that Grandpa left for that priest convention this afternoon while Luna and I were sleeping. I can finally sleep in in the morning for once.'_

Rei was so lost in thoughts of her warm, fluffy bed and sleeping the day away in it, that she released a scream when a large hand gripped her shoulder roughly and spun her around.

Suddenly she found herself face to face, or more like face to chest, to a form in resplendent silver and cobalt armor. She didn't even have to look at the person before knowing that he was extremely pissed off at something, or more specifically -_her_. That fact was proven when a clinking sound and a stinging sensation drew her attention to the gleaming sword that was now being held at her neck threateningly.

'_Well, this can't be good.'_ Rei thought to herself before letting her eyes slowly studying the sword pointing at her neck. Even if it was being held at her neck, she couldn't help but admire how beautiful it was in the moonlight. It was made out of beautiful silver-like material and it had a solitary golden-white dragon spiraling it's way up the sword. Suddenly her eyes were drawn to the dragon's blazing sapphire eyes.

The raven-haired girl couldn't stop the involuntary gasp that escaped from her throat as she watched as a burning gold swept through its eyes, completely overpowering the sapphire. '_Maybe it's a trick of the moonlight. It _is _dark outside._'

"Bellona." commanded a eerily calm voice, drawing Rei's attention away from the dragon and toward the man. Rei looked up just in time to catch the man's eyes change, exactly like the dragon's. Sapphire blue eyes were drowned out by a blazing gold. Even before they were completely covered with gold though, Rei couldn't help but think that she knew someone with those eyes. '_That couldn't have been a trick too. His eyes just changed color!_'

It was too bad that it was dark outside, the shadows were covering most of his face. Only patches of tan skin and raven hair were visible beside those narrowed golden eyes. She bet she would be able to know where she knew those eyes if she could only see his face.

'_What is with this guy? And where do I know those eyes from?' _Rei thought to herself as she continued to study him, trying to see his features more clearly in the darkness. '_First waving around his sword like he has every right and then that strange thing with his eyes changing. That isn't human, or at the very least he isn't normal.'_

"_Bellona_." came the call again, this time having obvious undertones of extreme rage. Rei winced when the sword was placed more firmly against her neck, almost drawing blood. "Why did you not stop when I commanded you to do so?"

Rei could now feel waves of power wash over her from where she stood, causing her attempt to take a step back. She didn't get very far however, if the door at her back meant anything. The waves of power were incredibly powerful, like nothing she had felt before. This was one time that she wished she didn't have any physic senses, they were going crazy just by standing in front of the man. With a slight wince and waver in her voice, both of which she tried to hide, Rei managed to respond to the strange man.

"Wh-what are you talking about? Who is Bellona?"

"Stop playing games! I told you to release my wife and you disregarded that direct order from me. Remember that promise you made to honor, protect, and obey." the man bit out harshly. It was apparent that he didn't want to take the calm approach anymore, if threatening someone with a sword at their neck was clam in the first place.

"I'm sorry. I don't know what you're talking about. You're going to have to leave---" Rei began calmly, until she fully registered what the man had said. She grew red with anger as she stared at the man in front of her. "_What?_ Order! Obey! Just who do you think you are?"

'_He's a lunatic!' _Rei ranted to herself as she completely tuned out the man, not knowing if he even answered her question or not. _'A lunatic with a sword. A powerful sword at that! He's even crazier than the Dark Kingdom generals. The generals…'_

With wide eyes, Rei looked at the man more closely. He _did _seem like a general, now that she considered the possibility. He did have the same maliciousness attitude and kind of incredible power that the generals had. Sure he wasn't dressed in those gray uniforms of theirs, but they _had _only encountered only two of them. Maybe the armor and sword meant he was higher up in the chain of command. Which would also give reason to why he was undoubtedly more powerful than both previous generals put together. It _was _very possible.

'_But then what's with the talk about a wife? And if he was a general, then shouldn't he have just appeared and began draining my energy without a word?' _Even as the more logical portion of Rei's mind pointed out that the man didn't act like either Jadeite or Nephrite, it also pointed out that not all two people were the same. He could very well be a general, this could just be part of his plan. No matter how odd it seemed.

'_There's only one way to find out.' _Rei thought as she closed her eyes in concentration. They slid back open seconds later when she encountered nothing but his extreme power and rage. She couldn't sense any evil vibes anywhere near or one him.

'_He has a mental barrier. I can't detect anything he doesn't want me to.' _the priestess realized as she unconsciously shifted the dead weight on her shoulder, unknowingly causing the man's attention to focus on her baggage momentarily with soft eyes.

The girl herself didn't pay any attention to the girl when she released a pain groan, but the man did. The eyes that were beginning to lose their golden luster blazed back to life, snapping his anger back to the girl in front of him.

Rei gasped -caught off guard- when the sword was pressed deeper into her neck, drawing blood this time. She winced when the man carelessly dragged the sword across her neck, causing a thin line to swell up with blood. She felt it as a few drops of blood escaped and ran down her neck unhindered. She glared back at the man's eyes defiantly, not daring to give him the satisfaction of seeing her giving in and wiping the blood away. She was not going to back down to some Dark Kingdom general. She was Sailor Mars, damn it!

"Unhand my wife, Bellona." repeated the man harshly as he glowered at the girl. "You need to stop acting so foolish and hand her over to my care."

"Listen to me, you lunatic." bit out Rei in her own harsh voice as her violet eyes meet his golden ones dead on. "My name is _Rei_, not Bellona. And I certainly _don't _have your wife with me. As I was going to say earlier, you will have to leave or I'll call the authorities. This is private property from 11:45 P.M. to 3:00 AM." Rei finished in a dismissing manner, as if she wasn't being threatened with a sword at her neck anymore. She may not be able to transform in order to preserve her identity but she still had her senshi honor to uphold.

"I think I can identify my own wife _Bellona_." the man declared coldly as he put emphasis on her name. Rei rolled her eyes exasperated, causing the strange general to tighten his hold on the gleaming sword at her neck. Looking closer Rei thought that it seemed to be gaining a steady glow and a more powerful aura but she couldn't be sure.

"I would know Sere anywhere in the universe and you ought to be able to identify her as well." the man continued on, glaring at Rei hatefully. "If you cannot then I suggest that someone immediately strip you of all your powers because you aren't fit to have them."

Rei just looked at the man carefully blank, letting none of her thoughts show on her face. '_He can't be implying what I think he is! No, think rationally Rei.' _the girl chastened herself with a mental slap, trying to stop her panicking_. 'He's a general remember? Part of all their plans has been to find the sailor senshi's true identities. He's just trying to get you to slip up.'_

"In case you still cannot figure out who I am talking about, my wife is the woman you currently have carelessly thrown over your shoulder." the man said, his voice echoing more rage than ever now. "And by those scorch marks on her arms and legs, also the woman that you have been using as target practice."

That was the message that caused Rei's lips to twitch and her to begin chuckling. "_What!? _Now I know for a fact that you have the wrong people. What _powers _are you talking about? And _Serena,_ being your wife? This blonde ditz, of all people? You're crazy. Just leave please, it's late."

Rei didn't get much farther than that because she convulsed into laughs, causing the girl on her shoulder to get jousted every other second and release more painful groans and whimpers. _'God, he can't even come up with a good lie.'_ Rei thought with a giggle. '_That's so pathetic on his part._'

It was a golden hand that shocked Rei out of her thoughts, literally. She couldn't see the actual hand that was almost completely wrapped around her neck, but it was there without a doubt. She could see the soft golden light that was radiating off of it and she could feel the pain the light as it burned her skin and the painful grip of the hand itself, digging into her neck wound. She tried in vain to see the general's sword, but it was no where in sight.

"Of course I will leave you alone. You are entitled to your privacy Bellona and I will not disrupt you anymore. " the man said calmly, no visible traces of anger in his voice anymore. Rei could still see his eyes glaring at her however, meaning he was angry still. "Before I leave you however, I would like my wife back. She is not safe anywhere near your person any longer. I know for a fact that you abused her with your powers and that she is in great pain currently. Believe what you will but I know the truth so I suggest you hand over Sere and stay out of my way. If you do not my sword may _accidentally _manage to slit your throat and we wouldn't want that to happen now, would we?"

It was as if the last sentence was all that was needed for Rei's attention to be brought back to the general's sword. Slowly he lifted his hand up and pressed his sword above his hand, against Rei's chin, causing her to wince once more but momentarily stop her struggling. With a sudden thoughtful look, the general brought his sword to Rei's cheek and cut it in the same way he did her neck, only vertical instead. It was not a major cut and nothing that would scar, but something that would last as a reminder of their encounter for a few days.

The girl's violet eyes were instantly drawn to the dragon on the sword again. She couldn't help but think that the golden-white dragon was taunting her with its burning eyes, silently mocking her inability to protect herself from the general. Eyes narrowed in fury, Rei looked square into the man's own burning eyes.

"Listen here buddy, I don't care what you believe but what gives you the right to come to _my _home, insult me, and the order me around as if you know me or are in charge of me?!" she half-wheezed half-ranted angrily as she continued to struggle in the general's hold. She knew that the clouds that had been covering the moon moved when she caught sight of his wildly twitching jaw and the frown on his face.

Rei didn't have any warning besides that wildly twitching jaw and his hard set eyes before Serena was grabbed from her shoulder and herself blasted with a ball of golden energy, making her fly backwards and crashing into a chair inside her living room, breaking it as she landed.

The raven-haired girl frantically scrambled back up to her feet when another golden-charged hand came out of seemingly nowhere and wrapped itself around her neck. Once again it burned and dug into her wound while cutting off her precious air supply, much harder this time.

Desperation crawled its way into Rei's mind. Frantically she reached up and began to claw at the hand as she struggled to breathe and not cry out but it did no good; his hand just tightened in reply to her struggling.

"You listen and you listen good. I have every right to tell you what to do and I expect every order I give you to be carried out. I do not know what is wrong with you or why you are acting in this manner but just be glad that I am not considering your actions tonight to be acts of treason." the man hissed furiously in her ear. "You had better get yourself back in order and give a _very _sincere apology to both myself and Sere or you are going to wish that you had never even raised your voice in anger toward me, let alone insulting my person and that of my wife's. Do I make myself clear?"

When the mysterious man backed up, he looked into Rei's face and loosened up his hold on her neck so she could give her answer. Rei made sure he knew what she thought loud and clear. The raven-haired girl spat as much as she could into his face and kicked his stomach with all her might. The murderous look that entered his eyes soon after was enough to make her flinch in fear but, unfortunately for her, he didn't even flinch from her assault on him, he stayed as steady as a stone.

When the general snapped Rei's head into the wall immediately afterwards, it was enough for her to see stars and for darkness to start drowning into her vision. Rei was already in bad shape from his chocking and the cut was stinging something fierce and that blow did not help one bit, but she was determined to fight her way through this. Transformed or not, she was a senshi.

"Let go of me!" Rei yelled angrily as the desperation continued to crawl in her mind. She continued to kick and claw at the man but it didn't do any good. "I haven't done anything to you or Serena _so let me go!_"

The enraged man practically threw Rei through the wall when he snapped her head back into the wall once again. The desperation continued to claw at her mind, even when she had to stop because the man's powerful aura began to suffocate her as well as his hand around her neck.

His aura was so powerful, making her sick to the stomach and continuously cringing. She hadn't thought this general could get anymore powerful but she was wrong. Every second that passed, he grew angrier and his power increased with it, giving her psychic senses an overload.

Rei almost cried with relief when the general took a step back before taking a deep calming breath. Sliding down to the ground while rubbing her raw neck, she watched as the now visible blazing aura and power surrounding the general shrunk back to him, disappearing as he called it inside. She couldn't see anymore before she convulsed into a coughing fit, the lack of air finally catching up on her.

"You're lucky that I decided to be merciful with you Bellona." came the general's calm voice once more, cutting through the haze Rei's coughs caused. Bleary violet eyes glanced at the general retreating form as he walked toward the odangoed-girl on her living room couch.

'_Is that where he moved her? How could he have moved that fast though? So he grabbed Serena, blasted me, must have moved her, then chocked me again a second later? That's not humanly possible. He _has _to be a general._'

"With all the damage done I see on Sere, you and whoever else is responsible should be beheaded. Fortunately for you, Sere loves you as a sister. She also needs to be taken care of immediately and I don't have the time to deal with you and your incompetence any longer." the general stated heatedly as he turned to Rei, golden eyes glaring with venom. "Just remember that if you do not get your act together, I will be back and nothing can save you."

Rei watched with hatred in her own eyes as the general sheathed his sword in the sheath that she hadn't even noticed was at his waist. Gently he unfastened his cape before wrapping it around Serena's form like a blanket. He then lifted Serena up and walked slowly toward the door, making sure not to jounce Serena too much as he walked.

With a flare of strength, Rei summoned a fireball in her hand and flung it toward the general. She watched in utter shock as the general easily sidestepped the blast, all without even showing the slightest hint that he knew she threw it.

She knew he did though. Before she could even blink, the general turned around and made a fist with his hand all the while golden light surging into again. He then made a punching motion toward her, causing the light in his hand to charge toward her in the shape of an energy ball, essentially what it was.

'_So that's how he summoned that energy ball_.' thought Rei before the incoming ball crashed into her stomach, knocking her into the wall. With a scream of pain, Rei lost consciousness, watching while the general turned around and continued to carry Serena out the door without another word.

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"Do the reading Merc." urged a quiet voice of a green-clad senshi. She glanced around soundlessly as her companion reached into her subspace pocket for her computer. So far, no one had noticed the two senshi on the fifth story balcony of an apartment building.

It was only minutes before that the two had finally reached Minako's apartment to initiate their plan. They had spent all day going over everything, anything that could possibly go wrong while munching on Makoto's baked goodies. It was finally around 5pm that they decided that they thought of every possible thing that could go wrong. From an unexpected youma battle to a snowstorm in the middle of this November month, that had it all covered.

After Ami left a quick message on her and her mother's answering machine, informing her mother she was spending the night over at Makoto's apartment, both girl's fell asleep around 6:30 after a quick bite for dinner.

Now here they were 7 hours later, at 1:30am, standing on Minako's apartment balcony waiting to break in so they could kidnap back one of their best friends from their ex-best friends. '_Only this kind of thing would happen to us_.' Sailor Jupiter thought with a smirk, trying to contain her laugh. It was the beeping sound of her friend's computer that sobered her up.

Turning to her friend, she saw the frown on the blunette senshi's face as she stared at the small screen strangely. With her own frown, she leaned over the smaller girl's shoulder to see the computer.

"So, what's the verdict, Merc?" Sailor Jupiter questioned. "Are they all here or what?"

"There's _no one _here." Sailor Mercury said as she glanced at her friend with disbelieving eyes. "I'm not picking up any readings, there's nothing recent."

"Your computer's got to be broken, Mercury." Jupiter said seriously as she glanced at the still closed balcony door in front of her. "They _have _to be here."

When the genius shook her head before going to type more information in her computer, Jupiter's frown deepened. Turning back toward the door, she made the motion of pushing sleeves up and marched the few paces toward the door. Looking through the door and checking the lock, she saw that it wasn't securely fastened inside.

With a quick jiggle of the handle and wiggle of the door, the lock unfastened itself and the brunette easily slid the door open. Quickly glancing behind her, she saw Mercury still typing in information while mumbling "That can't be right. Percentage should be lower."

Rolling her eyes, she went to her friend, snatched the computer away, and pulled the quietly protesting senshi inside the apartment. "Come on, Mercury. There's only one way to check to see if your computer is right or not."

It was ten minutes later that a distraught Sailor Jupiter stood in the middle of Minako's living room with a quiet Sailor Mercury beside her. All around them was evidence that someone had been there recently. A movie menu was still on the TV, piles of watched DVDs next on the other side of the couch, an ice cream tub and a spoon a few feet away, and a remote on the couch; all evidence that someone had been there.

In Mercury's hands were a few bloody bandages she had found underneath a bed in one of the bedrooms. Just more evidence that someone had been here. The problem was that they weren't there anymore, they had been gone for an hour at least. Too long gone for Mercury to pick up anything on her scanning.

This wasn't something they had planned for, much less expected.

Serena was _gone_.

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7/16/07 Posted: 7/19/07

All right everyone, yet another chapter done! You'll notice the small time frame between this chapter and the previous. Why is it so small you may ask? Because I was working on them at the same time. And let me tell you, I'm not going to do that again!

Last chapter, you might of seen my little note: "Yes, I _**know **_that Tokyo is a very crowded, busy city; no matter the time or day. But in my own little universe, Tokyo is like dead silent at night, hardly anyone about. But yes, like all cities there are still people about. As seen with the drunken men Rei and Luna were almost caught by."

A few of you were probably wondering**, What the hell? What drunk men and what did they almost catch Rei and Luna doing? **Well you see, that was meant for _this _chapter. **Sorry for any confusion everyone; I got mixed up on what was where in the chapters!**

All right everyone, what did you all think of this chapter? I bet you didn't expect Endymion's appearance. But that _was _what inspired everything. I just had this scene of a civilian Rei carrying an unconscious Serena, all the while Endymion's sword digging into her neck! It was awesome and I just had to develop it from that. **But no one could ever have guessed that this chapter was originally chapter **_**5**_Boy has the story evolved since then.

Anyways, I'm rambling here. So, Ami and Makoto went for Serena, yet no one was there when they got there. We know where Rei, Luna, and Serena went but what about Minako? Where did she disappear to and why didn't see give into temptation and release Serena? What's going through that golden-covered head of hers?

Oh yes, about the confrontation between Rei and Endymion. **It was really dark out, so at no time did Rei see Endy's full features.** She just saw his blue eyes before they changed and felt that they were the same as someone she knew. (which is Darien of course but she doesn't realize that). **Also, Rei does really believe that he is one of the Dark Kingdom generals. She is absolutely **_**positive **_**and convinced of that fact. **(If I was in her position, I would believe that too. I mean, a insanely powerful guy that displayed non-human/non-normal abilities while threatening to kill you. What else would you think?)

**Also, since Rei left Luna at Minako's to make her own way back, Luna wasn't there to see the general or see him taking Serena away**. She _is _a cat you know. She doesn't have the speed of a senshi.

On the note of Darien's ramblings before Endy shows up, **yes Darien **_does _**know that Sailor Mars is Rei now. **I will admit that he is going to be too caught up with Serena to worry about that for now though, so he will be kinda…blah about the whole thing for a few chapters.

Yes, in my story Rei _**does **_have a crush on Darien. **He just sees her as Odango's annoying friend that bats her eyes at him though, nothing serious. **They haven't dated and never will in my story. As you all probably saw with his thoughts toward her though. Threats and everything. Hehehe.

Only a few more things to say about this story then I'll leave you all alone.

**1. **Endymion possess, I guess you can say, Darien's body. It will be explained later, it was supposed to be in this chapter (along with Luna's reaction) but it would have been too long. But he _does _possess Darien's body. **When Darien returns to being Darien, he won't remember what happens when he was Endymion. Vise versa too, when Darien's Endymion he doesn't remember his life as Darien.**

**2. **You'll notice that Endymion only called **Serena **(or Serenity depending on how you look at it) **my wife or Sere**. This is on **purpose** on my behalf__so Rei **wouldn't catch Serena's real identity**. It is also the reason Serena is Serena in my story, not Usagi or Bunny.

A nickname for both Serenity and Serena is Sere, making them interchangeable and unable to tell there is a difference; good for hiding identities. Then Darien is called Darien and not Mamoru, because well, I prefer Darien and also because it would seem weird if I only used one English name in the story (plus there might be something else later on, but it's undecided for now). There you are! I know that a few of you were wondering why I hadn't used the names Usagi and Mamoru when I used names like Makoto and Minako and that's my answer.

**3. "**Bellona was an Ancient Roman war goddess. She is believed to be one of the numinous gods of the Romans (without a particular mythology and possibly of Etruscan origin), and is supposed by many to have been the Romans' original war deity, predating the identification of Mars with Ares. She accompanied Mars into battle and is taken variously as his sister, wife or daughter. She is portrayed with a helmet, sword, spear, and torch."

That just screamed Rei to me when I was looking up War Goddesses and it stuck onto the story.

**4. Please **tell me how you thought of **Rei's and Endymion's confrontation. **I _know _that Rei deserved more of a beating, but I tried to facture in some things. Like Serena has always considered all her friends as sisters, including Rei. (Even in the Silver Millennium! hint hint) and Endymion was pretty damn preoccupied with Serena and her condition.

I thought her beating was pretty good though. She had major cuts on her cheek and neck, sick to her stomach cause of the man's power was too powerful for her psychic senses, probably a concussion from being knocked into the wall so hard, not once but twice. Plus she was knocked down with two energy ball, one causing her to lose consciousness.

Nonetheless, tell me what you think! Was Endymion better than those wimpy clichés out there about him or not?

Tiger Celeste


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with. **Note**: I just want to say that this is my first fanfic story. I would greatly appreciate reviews and constructive criticism. Please NO flames.

Hello everyone! Chapter 11 done and delivered! _**Thank you so so **_**much for all the reviews! You guys rock! **

All right, I just want to say that after this chapter is done **I'd really like feedback on a portrayal of a character that appears during the last scene**. I tried to have him have a sense of humor but still be a man that carries a lot on his shoulders that makes him kinda, I don't know resentful? Sad, maybe?

Also, I love that you guys enjoy my version of Endy. I'm personally very pleased with how he's turned out so far. **Be sure to tell me what you think of Endymion in this chapter!**

On with the story!

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"That girl. Leaving me alone to make my own way back." grumbled out a burgundy-eyed cat angrily. With a agitated flick of her tail, she walked into the living room of Rei's house, only to stop in her tracks.

Quickly her face lost its anger and became one of wonder and slight confusion. She looked with awe at the scorch marks that adorned the floor, the scattered pieces of furniture about the room, and the broken lamp and chair that sat next to one another.

A pained groan sounded, causing the black cat to glance toward the far side of the room. There, lying at an odd angle against the wall, was a mass of raven hair and limbs.

"Rei!" yelled Luna urgently as she raced up to the girl and shook the girl's shoulder with a paw. "Rei, wake up!"

With another groan, the girl shook her head and moved into a more comfortable position against the wall. Opening her violet eyes, Rei blinked a few times and looked at the cat in front of her before looking out at the damage about the room. With a wince, she turned to look at the cat in front of her.

"Hey Luna." she moaned as she rubbed the back of her head. "Did you get the number of that truck?"

"Rei!" came the agitated reprimand as Luna sat herself in front of the girl. "This isn't a time to joke around! What happened?"

At this the cat indicated the large cut on Rei's cheek and the cuts and bruises on her neck before looking around the rest of the room. Suddenly Luna's eyes widened as something occurred to her. With a glare, she set her eyes back on the girl.

"Don't tell me you let Serena escape!" the cat growled dangerously, causing Rei to narrow her eyes in response.

"Oh she escaped alright, but not by herself." Rei retorted furiously. With her own glare, she leaned against the wall and closed her eyes. "You'll never guess who showed up to rescue her either."

"WHO?! It better not have been any of those senshi!" Luna yelled out crossly as she jumped to her feet. "First Minako's irresponsibility and now this! Those no good girls! They should know better than that! We told them that Serena is a traitor for goodness sakes! I knew that we should have kept a closer eye on them after they didn't have any confidence in our findings."

"No, no Luna. It wasn't one of the senshi. It was a new Dark Kingdom general." Rei stated as she pinched the bridge of her nose. She briefly opened her eyes to gauge Luna's reaction but closed them immediately after she saw Luna's murderous expression.

"WHAT?! What do you mean a new general helped Serena escape!? Did you let him take her!?" Luna shrieked out as she began pacing in front of Rei furiously. With a wince, Rei rubbed her temples trying to calm her pounding head.

"It's exactly like I said, Luna. A new general showed up at my door when I was about to bring Serena in the house. He told me to release his wife, almost killed me when I told him I didn't have his wife, and then calmly left with Serena after he attacked me and grabbed her! I didn't just let him take her!" Rei snapped back, angry that Luna would assume that she just let the general take Serena without a fight.

"Have a little faith in me Luna! Do you not see my neck? Or the cut on my cheek? I fought to keep him away!" argued Rei with a frown. '_She's always so suspicious of everyone. It's like she doesn't trust any of us.'_

"W-what? I don't understand. _Wife?_ _Serena?_ What exactly happened Rei?" came the confused questions as Luna stopped her pacing. Taking a deep breath, she continued more calmly. "Just start at the beginning please. Tell me everything that happened from when you left Minako's apartment."

"Gladly." grumbled out Rei as she adjusted her legs into a more comfortable position. With a wince, she touched her wounded neck in reminder before taking a deep breath and beginning.

"Nothing happened on my way home. There was no one to avoid so I simply jumped from rooftop to rooftop until I reached the shrine steps. When I was halfway up the steps I figured that it was safe to de-transform since no one was around anymore. So I did and headed up the steps. When I got to the door…."

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Around the same time that Rei was starting to explain everything to Luna (who was getting angrier by the minute), a furious man was silently walking down the street. Taking a deep breath, he tried to calm himself of all the left over anger Bellona had induced. Unknowingly, his golden eyes lost their anger-induced luster and became softer and lighter in color.

With gentle eyes, Endymion gazed down at the precious bundle leaning against his chest. He growled however when he spotted the bruise on her cheek and the other on her chin. With a frown, he took his index finger and softly trailed it over the bruise on her cheek.

'_Do not worry, Serenity. We are reunited once more and I will not allow this to happen again. I thought I had lost you forever._' he silently told his wife as he wrapped his arm back around Serenity's waist by her front, his other arm securing holding her to him by her bottom.'_What is happening to us though?'_

He knew she wasn't going to answer though, she was sleeping so deeply. '_Why did Bellona do this to you and act as if she had never before lain eyes on me? And why are we on Terra? We were last on Lunaria, during the war._'

No matter his questions though, Endymion took reassurance in the fact that he was on Terra. He could feel his home in his veins, in his very soul. He could overcome anything and protect Sere as long as he was home. Even so, nothing was the same as he remembered. It made him uneasy.

Looking around he didn't see the large trees that used to captivate him as a child or see the numerous animals that took shelter in the forests. In their place instead were strange buildings that spiraled into the sky with lights flickering here and there. Tall, oddly shaped lanterns stood on the side of the paths he was walking on. The larger portions of the paths were painted with markings like nothing he had ever seen before while more odd lanterns -these red, yellow, and green alternating- were suspended above the paths.

The strangest thing of all however was what he had seen only moments ago, making its way down the larger path. It had been a perplexing horseless carriage that was faster than even his most fit team of horses back at the castle.

Shaking his head in wonder and confusion at the baffling sights, Endymion stopped to focus on where his sixth sense was leading him, hoping it was wherever he lived now. When he felt the familiar sensation, the armored man walked in the direction he was being lead in with certainty.

'_Surely, we had to have been reincarnated, Sere. Only time would cause progress such as this._' he thought as he glanced down at his wife, silently hoping she would wake up and give him all the answers he sought. 'When _are we though?_'

Gently moving his cloak further away from Sere's face, Endymion watched the girl sleeping in his arms. '_You are different as well, a stór(1). You seem younger than I remember, yet you seemed to have aged as well. Like a soldier who carries heavy burdens would. I have only seen you as this once and it is not a time I wish to recall._'

Looking around him, at all the strange sights, Endymion was firm in his speculation that he and Sere had been reincarnated. '_That does not help me to understand Bellona's behavior however. Was she reincarnated as we surely were? If that is so, how did she regain her powers? You once told me that death would be one of the only ways for your guardians to lose the powers that were bestowed upon them. If Bellona died, she should not have retained her powers. She couldn't possibly be alive after so long, yet her powers are intact._'

A quiet mumbling brought Endymion's attention out of his thoughts and back to his sleeping wife. "No…Rei…you're burning m-me… stop...p-please…."

"Rei? Is that Bellona's name in this life?" he asked the girl in his arms as he unconsciously slowed in his pace. "It has to be. You said burning me. That is what Bellona did to you, Serenity. I saw the burn marks myself."

Endymion's returning murderous thoughts of what he would do to Bellona when he saw her again were disrupted when Serenity suddenly cried out and began to thrash about. Caught off guard, Endymion almost drop his wife in shock. Quickly tightening his hold on her, he began the task of calming her down.

"Shh. Do not worry yourself a stór. Bellona --_Rei_-- is gone. I promise you she will not harm you again." he whispered. Indeed, for the pain Bellona caused, she would be taken care of as soon as Sere was healed. Looking down at Serenity, he saw that she had begun to calm down at the sound of his voice and reassurances but she still looked too upset for Endymion. "Shh. It is alright Sere, no harm shall come to you."

Taking a deep breath, Endymion reached out with his mind, expecting to run into the girl's own mind so he could comfort her more efficiently. Instead however, his mental self encountered a wall. '_What in all Terra?_' he thought shocked. Urgently he reached out again and again, trying to touch Sere's mind with his own. Every time he tried however, the same wall interfered, cutting off all his efforts. '_This is not right. Not at all._'

It was then that he noticed what was missing. While he could still feel Sere, with their soul connection linking them, he could not feel her wholly. There was only a slight echo of her emotions in the back of his mind; not nearly as strong as it should be. Their link should be so strong that a tug would have the swell of her emotions crash down on him, altering him if something was wrong. The harsher the tug, the more danger it meant Serenity was in.

Their link was a safety notion that was created even before they were married. It was a way to protect Serenity, and although Endymion would not admit it out loud, a way to protect himself as well.

'_Dear Terra, Serenity. What are we going to do? Nothing is the same anymore. I do not even know if I know you in this lifetime.'_ with a sudden darkening frown, Endymion shook his head fiercely. '_No. No one is going to even try to keep us apart this time Serenity. I will not let you go and lose you again, no matter what. You are my wife regardless of what is happening.'_

Endymion was once again so lost in his thoughts that he didn't even notice how he blindly continued to follow his instincts, unknowing crossing a large intersection. He was half-way across the intersection when he first spotted another odd carriage.

Startled, he had stopped his trek when the carriage flashed white glowing eyes at him before making an odd beeping sound. It was when the beeping persisted that he finally took notice of how Serenity began fussing again in his arms, distressed at the sound. With a frown and tightening of his arms, he had begun to finish his way across the path but it had apparently not been fast enough for the horseless carriage's driver.

The blaring sound of noise, something that reminded Endymion of the time the cooks had tried to capture a stray cat from the kitchen, filled the air as the passenger stepped out of his carriage and leaned against the door of it.

"Hey jackass!" the driver as Endymion turned his head and looked at the man. '_What a strange man.' _the raven-haired man thought to himself as he studied the man a few feet away'_He does not wear any grab I am familiar with and he refers to me as a male donkey. I wonder if this is how all Terras present themselves nowadays._'

Indeed, the man was very peculiar in Endymion's opinion. The moonlight glittered off piercings that adorned his face in the oddest of places, on his nose and eyebrows in particular. He could not see all of the man's clothing but the strange glowing green skull on the man's shirt was enough for him to raise an eyebrow in curiosity. The only things familiar about the man was the smell of alcohol that came from his strange carriage and the language he spoke, even though the accent was different.

"Are you fuckin' listening to me?!" yelled the man once more as he flicked something away and smashed it under his feet. Endymion was surprised that he could even hear, let alone understand the man, with all the strange music in the background. Curious as to what the man had to say and why he had been referred to as a male donkey, Endymion fully turned around, exposing his armor to the man's headlights. "Pardon me?"

"I said, would ya mind keeping you and your bimbo--- hey! What's with the fuckin' outfit dude? Halloween passed!" at this the man began chuckling, thinking what he said was extremely funny. Once he stopped laughing, he suddenly leered and gestured toward Serena with a drunken smile.

"And what's with the girl? I mean, there's gotta be a reason why she's in that blanket, right? Tell me, did ya rape her or somethin'? Or was she just some cheap wench that you picked up off the streets and had your way with?"

He peered at Serena the best he could from his position. He couldn't help but notice her small structure and pretty features. "You mind if I have a go at her when your done? She's pretty hot." He suddenly glanced between Endymion and Serena thoughtfully, taking in the raven-haired man's possessive hold on her and how relaxed she seemed as she leaned against the man's chest.

"Nah." he slurred out with another chuckle after a moment. Lifting one of his hands to his mouth, he revealed the alcohol that Endymion had smelled. "It looks like you're still not done with her. Look me up when your done though. I'd _love _a round or two."

With another chuckle the man shook his head before sitting back in his car and taking another swig of his beer. As he shut his door, he turned toward Endymion, not noticing the man's stature and the newly appeared glow of his eyes in his drunken haze. "Anyways man. Would ya mind staying the fuck out of the road from now on? I don't wanna run over you or nothin'. Got enough problems as it is."

The man didn't get farther than revving his engine before Endymion freed one of his hands and punched the hood of the car with all his might, summoning the same attack he used to knock Rei unconscious. Both men watched, one is shock, the other in satisfaction, as the hood bent inward and the engine sputtered to a stop. The driver looked in awe at the golden sparks that flew from his hood as Endymion retrieved his hand from its imbedded position.

It was the strange groaning sound the car made and how it threatened to fold onto itself that caused the driver to spur into action. With a fluent stream of curse words and phrases on his part, he stumbled out of the car. Endymion smirked as he watched the man stare at him in horror, finally taking notice of the golden eyes that had blazed back to life. '_Big mistake leaving your carriage._'

"Wh--what the fuck are you?" he heard the now-sobered up man stutter in shock and fear from his position in front of the car's crushed hood. Endymion never gave an answer though. He walked closer to the terrified man, a familiar golden glow increasing in his free hand as he walked.

When he reached the driver, Endymion punched the man with all his might, watching as he hit the car's windshield and hood with a satisfying crunch and spray of glass. With a pained groan on his part, the unfortunate driver rubbed the back of his head, only for blood to stain his fingers seconds later.

"Dear god_. Shit, _I'm gonna die." he whispered as he wiped the blood off on his shirt. Hesitantly he looked toward Endymion but couldn't see anymore than golden eyes before something blurred his own left eye. Wiping it off, he discovered a large gash on his forehead. '_This guy's some sort of crazy non-human freak._'

Scrambling off the hood of his totaled car, the man tried to run away from the enraged man in armor. He didn't get far before he felt the blunt end of something collide with his back. Crumbling to the ground, he tried to get up and run but instead fell down immediately afterwards with a cry of pain. Looking down, the driver saw that a large piece of glass was now imbedded in his left knee. Closing his eyes in fear of what the psycho man would do, the driver waited in apprehension now that he was immobile.

With a raging glint in his golden-eyes, Endymion stalked his way to where the man fell after he threw his sword -handle forward- and hit him. With little mercy he harshly kicked the man's side, flipping him until he lied on his back instead of his stomach. He ignored the man's scream and groans as he was hit.

Once lying on his back, the driver's eyes were drawn to the moonlight shining on the steel fastened to the end of the crazy man's boots. '_That was why it fuckin' hurts so bad. Steel-toed boots._' he thought hazily, trying to curl up into a ball to protect his vital organs. He knew it wouldn't help though, the damage was already done and if it wasn't, the man would finish the job one way or another. '_I really am gonna die._'

"How dare you," came the enraged hiss, accompanied by a rather harsh kick, causing the driver to begin coughing, revealing a handful of blood. "to even suggest the mere notion of raping someone, much less my own wife. Then you had the insolence to suggest that she was a street wench and ask if you could have your way with her. Your death shall be looming on the horizon in the morrow."

With a disgusted frown, Endymion kicked the road next to the driver's head, causing dirt and loose gravel to shower the man. He was just beginning to walk away when the raven-haired man suddenly heard the man behind him whisper something. Frowning but still not turning around, he asked the man to repeat himself.

"I sa-said, I'm sorry. I d-didn't know she was your w-wife." was the barely heard answer before the driver began coughing again. After a minute the driver quieted down and not another sound was heard from him. Endymion didn't bother to see if he had died or not. Either way, with those injuries, the man would more than likely perish by the morning.

With a heave, Endymion maneuvered his precious package higher up on his chest and bent down to pick up his sword before quickly sheathing it. He could not help but be thankful that Serenity had not awakened during any of that ordeal. It was a good thing she was a deep sleeper.

Stopping where he squatted, Endymion lowered his head in respect to the man behind him and murmured "Be in peace", still unable to bring himself to look at the man.

"Hmm... " came the barely heard mumble as Serena tried to roll over in Endymion's arms as he straightened back up. She was wrapped and held so tightly now though that she couldn't move an inch though.

"Serenity?" came the quiet whisper, as the armored man continued on his way, much faster this time. If Serenity was indeed waking up, he did not want her to see such a sight. He knew she would not approve of what he had done but he did not like the thought of anyone even suggesting someone like Sere was a street wench. Or the horrible suggestion that he would ever rape her, much less letting anyone else or committing the awful act at all. It was bad enough that the man reminded him of another, one from long ago. The one who gave Serenity the fear of storms.

'_Why did I not simply transport myself to this place, wherever that is?_' Endymion thought with a remorseful shake of his head. If only he had transported himself and Sere, then he could have avoided that man. It was too late now, unfortunately. He could feel that they were close to his unknown destination.

Endymion looked down in time to see Serenity's beautiful blue eyes flutter open. He was disappointed to see that they were unfocused and hazed with pain however. Nonetheless he couldn't stop the instinctive smile that graced his face as a matching one blossomed on Serenity's.

"Serenity." he whispered again, trying to capture her attention. "How pained are you feeling?"

Endymion didn't get the response he was expecting, whatever that may have been. He watched as Serenity released a yawn and snuggled closer to his chest, his cloak around her softening his armor. That in itself didn't surprise the man, he had grown accustomed to Serenity doing that many a times. It was what Serenity said next that made him stop in his tracks and a crease and frown to marrow his face.

"Hmmm... Darien?" she mumbled out as she rubbed her face into Endymion's cloak. "For a jerk-wad, you've always smelled nice. Just like roses."

The girl then drifted back into unconsciousness, not seeing how Endymion looked at her in confusion and jealousy. '_Darien? Who in terra is Darien? And what is this…jerk-wad? It does not sound very pleasant…._'

Endymion then took notice of a strange sense of recognition at the name. Somewhere in the back of his head, he acknowledged the name, welcomed it even for its sense of comfort. Looking up at the strange, towering building that he now stood in front, the raven-haired soldier frowned thoughtfully. '_Is that me? Am I named Darien in this life?_'

Following the tugging that pulled him to the side of the building, his eyes focused on a vaguely familiar looking balcony seven stories up. With only a few jumps, he was standing inside the balcony and on his way to pulling open the door.

As Endymion walked into what looked to be a sitting room and pulled the door shut, he was hit with an intense sense of familiarity. As he walked further into the room, he couldn't help but think that he had been here before, many times. As if this was his home.

Spotting a sofa, he hurriedly walked over to it before gently laying Serenity on it, soothing her when she began to protest at the movement. Without even having to think about it, the raven-haired warrior then began looking for items about the apartment. Before he could began to investigate this place and find more information on whether or not he was this '_Darien_', he had to concentrate on Serenity and her injuries.

It took only five minutes of rushing around for Endymion to find all the items he had been looking for. Scissors, numerous towels, a bowl of warm water, and two strange white boxes filled with medical supplies laid on the coffee table he had moved out of the way. He only stopped briefly to remove all the armor on him. He was left in black pants, a long navy-colored shirt, and black leather boots as he squatted down to Sere's level and went to work.

"Hold on a stór." Endymion muttered as he unrolled his cloak from Serenity's form. Absently he noted that any skin he touched was burning hot and Sere had begun sweating sometime when he was looking for the supplies, all signifying a fever. He was much more focused and worried on the blood he could see soaking through his wife's clothing however.

Much faster now, at the risk of Serenity dieing from blood loss, he set to work as he pulled on a pair of strange white gloves he had found in one of the boxes. First Endymion cut away his wife's destroyed outer clothing, leaving her in only her unmentionable and a strange pink binding made out of cloth that was wound around her chest. As he was assessing the damage done to Serenity, he realized that it was more serious than he had thought.

Someone had obviously tried to patch Sere up, as evidence of the bandages he had pulled away with her clothing, but they had not done a very thorough job. As it was, blood had already soaked through all the bandages, staining his gloves red, as he carefully cut and peeled the gauze and other patches off.

Now that there was nothing blocking his view, the soldier saw the extent of Serena's abuse. There were several small sluggishly bleeding cuts everywhere, some already infected due to lack of proper treatment. Scorch marks adorned Sere's upper arms and legs, all angry red colors. Numerous colored bruises were everywhere he looked, almost all shaped like fingerprints and handprints. The worst bruises being the ones on Serenity's upper arms and those on her cheek and chin.

On the blonde's stomach were two large slashes that was bleeding heavily, both already oozing a green puss from infection. With a wince, he realized that they would need to be stitched. Looking higher up, Endymion caught sight of a familiar link of heart-shaped burn marks and wounds that drew his attention to Sere's neck and shoulder.

"Áine." he growled dangerously as he dipped one of the towels into the bowl of warm water and began cleaning the cuts on Sere's stomach. "I should have known that you would have a part in this as well."

It took almost ten minutes for Endymion to wipe down Serenity's front from head to toe. He then set to work on feeling along all his wife's major organs and ribs, trying to see if anything was broken. He was not a doctor but instinct was urging him along in his treatment and he was not going to argue with them. He wanted to help Sere as much as he could.

"We were fortunate, a stór." he said to the unconscious Serenity after a few minutes, unable to hold back his relief. "Nothing is broken."

With a sudden frown, he realized that his wife was still shivering, dealing with the fever and infection. Pulling off his blood-stained gloves, he disregarded them in exchange for another pair of clean ones from the other white box.

It took another thirty-five minutes for Endymion to bandage and bind all of Sere's wounds, all the while applying two strange balms to them that he had found in the boxes. One of the balms, thankfully, had been labeled for burns. The other, some type of clear gel that said it was for cuts, scraps, and scars as well as infection.

The longest time he spent was on stitching up the two cuts on Sere's stomach. He had fortunately found a new package of needles and thread buried at the bottom of the medical supplies after some digging. After some sterilization he had set to work, praying the blonde wouldn't awaken as he worked, which she thankfully hadn't.

After Sere was covered in bandages and medical tape and Endymion was satisfied with his stitching, he moved to her back, hoping that there were not many more injuries there to greet him. Unfortunately, as he turned her over, he realized that he was wrong.

There, clear as day, was a large slash on his wife's back, running from her lower right shoulder blade to skim over her spine until it reached her lower left back. With a relieved sigh even in his horror at the wound, the black-haired man saw that her ribs and spine were undamaged, the slash just barely broke the surface there.

"Dear terra." he whispered in shock as he stared at the injury. It was a bright red color, almost two inches thick near her waist. If Endymion was right in his suspicions, it looked as if Sere had been struck by a whip.

"Áine." he whispered darkly as realization hit him. With a muttered series of curses he began cleaning the wound with a new towel. "I should have dealt with you long ago. It seems that even in this life you are troublesome."

It took another twenty minutes for Endymion to clean the cut before he began to stitch up the more serious areas, those that were too thick to heal properly. When he was finally done, the soldier gently lifted Serenity up and led her to the bedroom he had stumbled upon when he was looking for medical supplies.

Once she was settled down, he changed her into one of the shirts he spotted lying on a chair, hoping the added layer would help with the fever still surging through her body. He then covered her with all the blankets he could find before placing a cold towel on her head. When Endymion was satisfied with his work and could not think of anything more that could be done, he set to work on finding information on Darien and whether he was him in this life or not.

As the warrior made his way into the sitting room, he finally took the time to look around. Before he had been too preoccupied with Serenity's injuries to see anything. He couldn't stop the humorous smirk that graced his face as he saw that the room looked empty, bare. '_This must be my home. It seems my idea of furnishings has not changed._'

As Endymion glanced about the room, he saw a desk on the far side of the room. Curious and wondering if he could find any information there, he headed toward the desk without delay. His attention was immediately brought to several documents scattered about the desk with the name _Darien Shields_ scrawled on them.

Looking closer, he found that many of the documents were for payments and other things of the sort. He also found some strange, thick books that were labeled _'Organic Chemistry' _and _'Biology of the Body'_. It seemed this Darien also shared his own thirst for knowledge.

It was when Endymion spotted the odd painting that he was convinced without a doubt he was this _'Darien Shields'_. A tall, raven-haired man was dressed in a green and gold floor-length tunic of some kind, his hand firmly in the grasp of a much older man's. His blue eyes stared out at the painter as he showed them a rolled document wrapped with a red ribbon, a proud smile etched on his face.

'_It _is _me._' Endymion thought to himself amazed. Picking up the peculiar casing the painting was in, he slowly ran his hands along the man inside it. Looking around him, he stared at everything he could, absorbing every detail. '_So, this was Darien's home, _his _home._'

"Why do I not remember anything then?" Endymion asked himself with a shake of his head as he headed back toward the bedroom, satisfied with his findings for now. The soldier couldn't stop the relieved smile that slid onto his face as he realized one thing. Sere knew _him_, she knew this Darien in this lifetime.

'_I have to find out what is happening though. Why I have this block in my mind that is keeping me from Sere. Not even death was supposed to hinder it._' he thought as he crawled in the bed beside Serenity, moving under the covers to reach her better. When he saw how pained and sick Sere still looked in her sleep, he frowned as something occurred to him. Taking a deep breath, he gently passed his hands over the blonde's sleeping form.

When golden sparks leapt from his fingertips and began to surround her, he smiled sleepily. "Idiot." he mumbled to himself as he settled further into the bed. "Why did I not think of doing that sooner? My healing powers are what I should have used from the beginning. Fortunately it seems as if they still function properly, just like my other powers did. Sere should be healed much sooner and more efficiently now, better than simple balms could help."

As the raven-haired man drifted off the sleep, he wondered why he felt so tired. He did not usually feel so exhausted when he used his powers in the past. He dismissed it as nothing moments later though, letting himself give into the sleep that was overpowering him, wrapping Serenity up in his arms as he did so.

Because he was asleep, Endymion did not notice how his form pulsed gold minutes later. The eyes behind his eyelids faded back into their familiar dark blue. His medieval clothing disappeared and was replaced with dark blue sleeping pants and a pair of black socks. The armor that was left in the living room disappeared in a flash of golden lights.

He also did not notice how the golden sparks that were still drifting about Serena's form disappeared without a trace, being drawn back into his body.

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An hour and a half earlier, about the same time that Endymion was wiping Sere down with a towel, a figure obscured in shadows silently peered around the Crown Arcade's storage room as they pushed away a stack of boxes. Their smile widened as they spotted the hidden door that was underneath them. With a flawless movement, the figure flung open the door and jumped in the opening, the door closing behind them with an audible click.

The person quietly made its way along the torch lit path until it reached the large iron cast door with the faded symbol etched into it. Studying the door momentarily, they reached out and turned the symbol counterclockwise, reveling in the soft click that echoed in the darkness.

With a heave, they pushed open the door and after a quick glance around the area, closed it as silently as they could. Turning around, the figure spotted the weaponry that lined the walls, most glittering in the moonlight coming from the small window on the far upper left-hand corner. It looked as if there were at least one of every kind of weapon imaginable.

'_He was holding out on me._' the figure thought with a frown, referring to a certain blonde-haired arcade worker. Immediately the figure rolled its eyes, exasperated with itself. '_Of course, it isn't likely he would have told me._'

With a shake of its head, the figure finally spotted the communicating computer it had come for. With a smile making its way back across its face, the person moved confidently towards the computer, even in the overwhelming darkness. Spotting a rolling desk chair against the side of the wall, they gingerly sat down and peered about the room suspiciously again. '_This place is creepy. Why did they decide to put a communication room in a basement anyways?_'

"Enter name." came the mechanic voice as the figure reached the computer's sensors. Ignoring the demand, the figure rolled its chair closer and pulled out a paper from its pocket.

"Hmmm." came the distinctly female mumble as the figure smoothed out the paper on the edge of the desk the computer sat. With a frown, she decided that it was smooth enough after a few passes across the desk. "Here we go."

The figure then set to work on hacking into the system, glancing at the paper every few seconds to make sure the coding it was copying was correct. It took not even ten minutes of running in codes and passwords before the mechanic voice returned.

"Confirmation acceptable. Direct access to A152LN granted."

"Success!" whispered the voice as she typed in some more information. '_And to think that I had my doubts on whether this would work or not._'

"Password accepted."

With a relieved sigh, the woman leaned back and waited for the person it called to appear. It didn't take very long before a grating, scratching sound echoed about the room. With a wince, the figure rubbed its ears to try to alleviate the pain. It straightened to attention though when a blurry image appeared across the whole screen.

"What?!" snapped the irritated, and rather sleepy, voice. A slight bluish-gray color was all that was visible except for a shock of white, something the figure knew was hair. "Do you know what time it is?"

"Hmmm. About 1:50, if I remember correctly." smirked the woman as she leaned forward to rest her chin on the palms of her hands. "But, of course, I wouldn't know what time it is where you are. Always so secretive aren't you, Artemis dear?"

"What?" demanded the figure on the other side as they peered at the screen, trying to see past the blur. "Who the hell is this?"

"Oh, quit the dramatics Artemis." came the woman's exasperated, and slightly annoyed, reply. "Adjust your monitor and volume, wouldn't you?"

The woman shook her head in amusement as she heard Artemis's mumbled curses. She knew he was doing as she asked though, he was always so curious. Sure enough, the clear figure of her former teacher slowly appeared on the screen and she smiled as innocently as she could.

"Do you know who I am now, dear teacher?" she asked smugly as she leaned back in the chair, her arm slung over the back absently.

"Áine." came the shocked whisper. The said female watched as her former mentor's eyes widened before he looked around him frantically. She watched in amusement as he disappeared from view and the sound of frantic movement filled her ears.

"Done hiding?" she asked with a small laugh when the white-haired man returned moments later.

"How did you manage to contact me?" came the hiss as Artemis ignored her question. She couldn't help but notice that he still glanced around him frantically every now and then, as if someone would pop out at him at any moment.

"Hmm. Oh, I have my ways." came the mysterious reply as she shook her head in amusement. "Besides, you shouldn't be surprised. You were the one that contacted me last time. The last _two _times, if I remember correctly."

Minako watched as Artemis stopped his nervous glancing, his gaze snapping back to hers. She wasn't surprised to see the fury and shock that clouded his eyes but she _was _shocked to see the hurt and betrayal that was buried deep within them. It seemed he was still hurt by her past actions.

Her eyes softened drastically as she stared at her former teacher. She noticed the dark bags that had no doubt taken up permanent residence underneath his eyes. His tired stance and the drooping of his eyes were also obvious, no matter how hard he tried to mask them.

Minako suddenly felt guilty for awakening him up. No matter what time it was wherever he was located, there was no doubt in her mind that she had woken him up from some of the only sleep he got in some time.

"Well, I'm sorry for my momentary lack of judgment. I simply thought I'd see how you were doing!" came the enraged whisper of her teacher, knocking the golden-haired girl from her guilt. "Besides, I only ever had contact with you those two times. I thought you were dead before then!"

"Wha--?" she mumbled as she shook herself from her thoughts. A smile made its way across her face as Minako processed what he had said. "I _am _grateful you contacted me, Artemis."

When she saw her teacher's blue-gray eyes become frosted in cold hatred, the smile on her face slipped slightly before it became smug. "You're the one who should have thought it through."

"Bull!" snapped the white-haired man, wincing when the sound seemed to echo in his room. With a frown, he continued in a soft hiss. "You tricked me and you damn well know it."

"And you should have through about what I would do. Face it Artemis. I'm not on your side anymore." Minako stated. "You should never had mentioned a man fighting youmas."

When she saw her former teacher's brows draw together in a frown and him open his mouth, more than likely to protest, she quickly cut him off. "Even _if _it was only in passing. You should have realized that I connected everything together."

"I didn't say anything able to be connected!" burst out Artemis, eyes becoming darker in anger now. It seemed he no longer cared he was loud. "That statement could have been about the Silver Millennium for all you know!"

"No, we were talking about a recent fight of mine with a stray youma while I was in London. You said, and I quote, that 'the man was almost hurt fighting as well'. Then you began mumbling something about Tokyo." smirked Minako as she leaned her head back on the palms on her hands. "Present tense."

"That does not mean anything." insisted the white-haired man with a shake of his head. "I could have been talking about a civilian!"

"Yes." mused the golden-haired girl thoughtfully. "I had considered that possibility as well. So I did the only thing I could do. I relocated to Tokyo to investigate. And after only short two months of silent observation, guess what I found?"

"Your heart again?" came the exasperated grumble as Artemis drummed his fingers on his desk in an exaggerated manner. Suddenly he stopped drumming his fingers and looked thoughtful. "Or was it your conscious? Maybe, we'll all get lucky and you found both? Miracles _do _happen you know."

Minako continued on as if she hadn't heard him. "It was most interesting. Four sailor senshi battling youmas. _Four_. A girl called Sailor Moon had also joined the senshi. How strange, I remember thinking, that an unknown senshi would be from the Moon. Of course, it didn't take long for me to realize just who she was."

"_And?_" prodded Artemis when Minako suddenly trailed off. "How is any of this relevant? I already know who Sailor Moon was. She's Serenity, you idiot. "

Minako simply rolled her eyes at the man as she continued to muse. "But during those two months, I did not see any signs on this man who had been fighting youmas. With each passing fight, I was convinced that you were simply talking about a civilian, so I showed myself to the senshi. They finally met Sailor Venus."

"Would you just get to the damned point Áine. You're wasting my time!" yelled out Artemis as he ran an agitated hand through his hair. "If I didn't already have white-hair, I would have got it just waiting for you to get to your point!"

"I'm getting there. Calm down." insisted the girl, blue eyes flashing angrily. "It was only a week later that I was a constant member of the senshi. They even gave me a communicating device so I would know when and where the fights were instantly. You see, I hardly had the chance to become real friends with them and hang out."

She glowered when she heard the man on the other side of the screen snort in amusement. "Friends, sure. I've heard that before."

"_Anyways_," she growled. "at that first youma fight after I joined the senshi, I finally saw him. Sailor Moon had been targeted behind her back and none of us were able to warn her in time. I thought for sure she would be hit but I assumed wrong. A man came out of the tree line, saving her at the nick of time. Later the other senshi explained to me that this man, this Tuxedo Mask as he was called, was Sailor Moon's guardian of sorts. He always saved her without fail but would never say whether he was an ally to them or not. In fact, while he always saved Sailor Moon, he almost always stayed in the trees until he was needed.

"That was about the time I realized that I had never watched a whole fight, I had always arrived late or left early, missing Tuxedo Mask in the process. I then began thinking about this silent savior. What man would put himself in such danger just to protect one girl, someone he didn't even know the real identity of? I realized that Endymion would always protect Serenity, no matter if he knew it was her or not. And, as you know, it was indeed her.

"I was damn near blasting the man's lights out before I realized that he barely had any power. Pathetic I had thought, no way could he be Endymion. I brushed off Tuxedo Mask as a simple lovesick fool; insignificant to my search. I realized how ignorant of me that was when I spotted my brother through an arcade window a few weeks after first seeing Tuxedo Mask.

"After seeing brother, I considered why he would be here, considering he wasn't helping the senshi fight. I had had a suspicion when I spotted him talking to an familiar looking raven-haired man, but I can't been able to confirm or deny it. You had contacted me at that moment, via my video cell phone again."

The blue-eyed young woman suddenly stopped and looked at her teacher suspiciously. "How did you manage to do that anyways? Almost no one has that cell phone number, it was always for Sailor V promoters and whatnot."

"Oh, I have my ways." he mimicked in a high-pitched voice before growling. "Via, none-of-your-business express."

"Fine." grumbled the girl before going back into her story. "As I was saying, you contacted me that same day to check up -or _spy _now that I think about it. You unknowingly confirmed my suspicions, all without me even having to tell you I was in Tokyo."

"Yes I know. I fell for your act, you heartless woman." stated Artemis as he glared at Minako coldly. "I realized it as soon as Cadeyrn (2) contacted me the next day."

"Cadeyrn." mumbled Minako quietly with a sudden far-off look in her eyes. "How long has it been since I last called my brother by his name?"

"Get on with it." growled Artemis angrily as he pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to alleviate his headache. '_Why am I even bothering listening to all this? Oh right, I want her side of the story so far. Why does she have to talk so much though? I already have a migraine._'

"Anyways, I was commenting on how my agent wanted to do some promoting for Sailor V in Tokyo. I watched as you became flustered and tried to persuade me not to go. You told me every negative thing you could think about. Overpopulation, crime, etcetera."

"Then, by some miracle, you were called away by an associate of yours. You had turned off the screen but forgotten the volume, allowing me to hear every word. I heard you ask if anyone had had contact with either Jadeite and Zoisite yet. You reminded them that Cadeyrn had found Him in Tokyo and told you _yesterday_ and them knowing as soon as possible was important.

"I knew then. I knew why you would send two of your top generals to Tokyo, why Motoki was there befriending the familiar looking black-haired man, why Tuxedo Mask protected Sailor Moon and not the other senshi with his life. _Endymion_. Your _pathetic _prince was finally back." As she finished, she couldn't help but spit out the word prince as it was something vile.

The chair behind him crashed to the ground as Artemis stood up in anger. His blue-gray eyes pierced into Minako's own sky blue as he glared at her. "You will hold you tongue. _King _Endymion is your ruler and you damn well know it. Just because you did not swear loyalty and allegiance to him as the others did, does not change that fact. You are still sworn to Serenity and by her marriage to Endymion, you were charged with his protection."

"I am well aware of the oaths I took in the Silver Millenium." came the iced reply as Minako stood up straighter in her chair. "But I did not hold that oath then and I will not now."

Suddenly Minako looked much older than she was. With an exasperated sigh, she looked at her teacher tiredly. "My brother has made it very clear what he thought of my actions and it seems that you have as well. I will tell you this though. Not everything is black and white Artemis. I live in a shade of gray. "

"What?" came the confused reply as Artemis started at his former pupil. "There is no gray in this, Áine. You are either against us or with us."

"Ask my brother." came the blue-eyed woman's reply. "I had a conversation with him moments after I learned it was Endymion. I tried to convey my actions to him, but he heard them with a deaf ear. Now if you will excuse me Artemis, I have someone to attend to."

Artemis didn't get a chance to reply before the connection was terminated. With a sigh, Artemis bent down and straightened back his chair, falling back into it as soon as it was upright. _'I don't understand, Áine. You have done nothing but try to destroy Endymion, yet you say that you are in the gray?'_

It was the loud knock at the door that broke Artemis's thoughts. "Yes?" he sighed as he flipped the lock and opened the door, settling back into his normal routine.

"Commander." came the quick salute as the young man in a lab coat bowed in respect. "You are needed in the surveillance room immediately. There is something you should see."

"What is it?" came the stern question, the commanding presence everyone seemed to need to see back in his stature. People knew how serious he was about their mission if he acted the part of a stern, relentless leader. So that's what he was burdened to do, act like someone he didn't want to be.

"There have been strange spikes of power in the Tokyo region within the last hour, sir." came the quick reply as the man suddenly looked uneasy with the imitating man before him. "We are still unsure of their origin and purpose. We thought you might be able to determine what they are."

"Dark Kingdom?" Artemis promoted as he closed the door to his room and locked it.

"No sir, we believed that at first as well. With some observation though, we learned that they did not follow the same pattern."

"All right then. I'll see what I can do." Artemis replied as he followed the young man to the surveillance room. With one last wistful look at his room over his shoulder, Artemis saw all thoughts of a nice long nap fade away with each step.

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8/16/07

1. "a stór" **my love **in the Gaelic/Irish language. It also means "my treasure" or "my precious". Either way, it's a term of endearment.

2. Cadeyrn (KAHD-ayrn) A Welsh name meaning battle prince. Specifically: _cad_ "battle" + _teyrn_ "prince" No mythology for the name. (Awesome name if I say so myself. Looks and sounds cool. If I ever have a son, I want him to have a name like that.)

I just have to say that my favorite line was Artemis's mimicking of Minako's line and the whole "via none-of-your-business express" I don't know why but it had me cracking up when I wrote it and reread the whole chapter. It just have been that mental picture of him I had in my mind. Hahaha.

All right everyone, Chapter 11! Lets see, you sure do learn a lot of information in this chapter. Yes, people **ARTEMIS **is the **COMMANDER!!! **It wasn't like you didn't know already though. That was one mystery quite a few of you guys guessed from the start. I was kinda bummed, but glad at the same time. I mean, it wasn't _that _original and un-expectable.

Lets see, you also learn Minako's side of the story before joining the senshi. It seemed she was pretty dead set on finding Endymion, even then. **But just what does she want with **_King _**Endymion, at least besides punching his lights out as she, or I kinda, so nicely put it?** **What is this shade of gray?**

And yes, everyone learns that **Endymion **_**is King! **_A reviewer some a few chapters back asked if the king I mentioned was still alive and I think this answers that question. **Yes, Endymion was the only man that could beat Artemis aka, the king.** So what does this all mean, you wonder? It means that **Artemis and everyone at HQ are incredibly loyal to Endy**. Does it answer if **the generals are loyal to Endy? It could, but it also could not. **You just never know with this story.

Lets see, we also see Luna's reaction to Serena being kidnapped. If you'd **please kindly note **Rei's thought of **"it's like she doesn't trust any of us [the senshi" **That is going to be important, because (and I will tell you all this early) **Luna **_**doesn't **_**trust any of them**.

When **Minako told Ami and Makoto about Serena's **'**questioning' **and **her crimes**, they **denied it fiercely **and **refused to take part **in their kidnapping. Their denial made Luna become suspicious of them, because it had made so much sense to her. So, they became #1 and 2 on her "to watch" list and for them to be denied access to Serena. Then obviously we know why she doesn't trust Minako. You know, the whole let's not-watch-Serena-tonight thing.

**A lot of you have been wondering/asking/commenting on why Luna and Rei were so dead set on getting a confession out of Serena and why they were so quick to believe Luna's dreams. **Let's just say that it's all part of a bigger story and I can't tell you. But, in their defense, **they don't trust the fact that Sere is always around the suspicious and possible enemy Tuxedo Mask and trusts him too much**. Then **she says she fought a new general with the same suspicious man when there hadn't been a sign of a new DK general in a long time. **So, when Luna told them of her dreams, it made sense. **How did they know if Sere was part of the DK and helping them all along or not?**

All right, what else? Yes, we see part of Endy's side of the story and he learns that he is named Darien Shields in this life. **I hope you all liked that scene with the drunken driver! **Remember to watch what you say when your drunk! It could get you in a lot of trouble. Lol. Even though the scene seemed might seem trivial, it _did _have a purpose. **It was to show how much undying protection and love that Endy had for Sere. **Also, it **showed how incredibly powerful he was but also at the same time forgiving when it's due**. (After the driver said he was sorry and Endy said be in peace, signifying he was forgiven.) Then Endymion also shows his love when he takes care of Sere while we learn the extent of her injuries.

And **why did Serena know Darien smelled like roses**? Because of her **frequent crashes into him**, she does get her nosed mashed into a nicely built chest (considering he is a cartoon, it's pretty damn nice. If only he was real….sigh….) **Serena can't help but notice a few things **when smashed against a certain someone.

Also, **will Sere remember her comment to whom she believed was Darien**? Sadly **no, she was delirious with a fever and just said what was on her mind**. Which is also why she didn't notice that the man carrying her had armor, golden eyes, and called her Serenity. All she could see was that a man who looked (and smelled!) like Darien was carrying her and she wasn't with Rei anymore.

All right that's all the questions and answers I can think of. **If you have any more go ahead and ask away. Please review too! I love reviews, they inspire me to right more! **And while you're at it tell me what you thought of Artemis and his conversation with Minako!

Tiger Celeste.


	12. Chapter 12

-1Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

Ack! Sorry for the incredibly late update people. When was the last time I even posted a story? August? Holy crap! I'm _really _sorry about that.

The reason I am so late, you may wonder as you prepare that bonfire to burn me alive. Well, I had the _**hardest**_, _**hardest **_time with this chapter even though I had already written one form of it almost a year ago. This has to be the 5th or 6th revision of this chapter, and not all of them had the same information.

I had the worst time with the one of the scene below, about Serena waking up and her reaction. The previous revisions just had too much information, and Darien was _way _too emotion for this timeframe. I mean, it may seem like he is in this version, but trust me it is way better. He's feelings are justified this time, since he actually saw her with Rei and how she didn't care, then he's still supercharged with the leftover feelings of Endymion's.

Then while I was trying to figure out how to write this chap, school started again and its just been hectic since it's my senior year and I'm trying to do normal schoolwork, plus applications, plus all kinds of extra stuff, plus write and update. It's murder! But I love this story, so I don't have any plans to _not _finish it. So that's my reasoning. Blah.

REVIEW please. It only takes a moment! Even review if your simply say "Nice story. Adding." It makes me happy, people! _**Please**_.

All right, since I took for forever, I won't bore you anymore. Onto the story!!

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"Zoicite!" came the sharp voice as it echoed about a black void, causing the said young man to wake up startled. The blonde-haired man glanced about, wondering what time it was. With a roll of his eyes moments later however, the man realized that he wouldn't know because it was always dark in the nothingness that made up their kingdom.

When the sharp voice echoed about the space again, only louder this time, the young man rushed out of his cot with a flurry of Terran curse words. Taking a moment to straighten out his gray uniform and smooth out the hair that hung from its ponytail, he disappeared in a blaze of Sakura petals.

Within seconds he was kneeling in front of the raised dais that held his queen. He didn't have to look up from his position of staring at the black floor to know what the queen looked like. Fiery red hair hung down in waves to reach the waist of his queen, matching her red glaring eyes.

His queen wore a strapless evening dress made of purple velvet, with a matching purple and silver necklace and armband adorning her person. A circlet of horns stretched across her forehead along with a horn protruding from both of her shoulders. Zoicite had always wandered whether the horns on her shoulders were simply decoration but had never had the bravery to ask such a thing from his queen. It could mean certain death.

"My queen." he stated humbly, still kneeling as he shook himself out of his thoughts. He winced when he heard nails being dragged across something, more than likely the iron throne the queen sat upon.

"Report on your progress, Zoicite." came his queen's voice slithery voice, feeling like a snake making its way up his back. With an emotionless face, the long-haired stood from his kneeling position. He knew that her demand was as good as a request to stand. If nothing else, she never complained about his actions.

"Yes, my queen." declared Zoicite eagerly. He knew that his queen would be happy of his progress. He had managed to succeed far more than either Jadeite or Nephrite ever did. "The youma, Maerina, has managed to locate a weak spot."

"Where?" the evil queen demanded, her eyes taking on a fierce red glow, even though her expression remained neutral. Zoicite let a small smile slip on his face, he knew his queen was pleased with his work.

"In the ocean, my lady. During a routine scan I had found an odd reading just past the harbor. Upon further investigation, an opening was discovered."

"And this opening? Where does it lead?" asked the red-haired queen as she waved over a youma with her long staff. Zoicite watched as a shadowed creature eagerly rushed over before offering a glass of red liquid to the queen.

"I believe that it leads straight to the core of the planet, my queen." Zoicite stated proudly, watching as his queen finally smiled, revealing her sharp fangs. "Unfortunately, there has been no definite proof of its destination yet. However, Maerina has already managed to deepen it for further investigation. I will report to you once she has determined its location."

"Good work, Zoicite." said the queen as she settled back in her throne, sipping her drink with a pleased smile, her eyes shining in the darkness. "I am pleased with your progress. Continue on."

"As you wish, my queen." bowed Zoicite with a smile. As he transported himself back to his room, he swore he heard his queen's evil laughter echo in the throne room, causing his own smile to widen.

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'_Hmmm.. My bed feels extra soft today.' _a young, blonde-haired girl couldn't help but think to herself as she snuggled further into the pillow she was resting on.

As layer upon layer of sleep was pulled off the girl though, she couldn't help but notice a few things. First, pillows didn't usually move rhythmically or breathe on the back of her neck. At least, not that she could remember in her sleep-induced mind. Second, her pillow -or even her bed that matter- didn't have the wonderful aroma of roses imbedded in them.

'_But I can smell roses everywhere.' _she thought with a tired yawn as leaned back into the warm at her back. About this time, the young girl noticed something that she should have from the start. There was a heavy weight over her waist that she was certain didn't belong to her. Her arms, she felt as she wiggled them around experimentally, were under the pillow she was resting on.

'_But, then who's arm is it, if it's not mine?' she _thought to herself with growing panic. The blonde-haired girl squeezed her eyes shut in fear before something occurred to her that made her hesitantly relax her stiff muscles, at least somewhat. _' Wait, I'm still with Minako. Maybe she fell asleep in here while checking up on me or something? That's always a possibility. Yeah, I'm sure it'll just be Minako's arm. I'm overreacting, that's all.'_

Managing to completely relax herself again, Serena opened her eyes, a smile on her face at her own ridiculousness. _'I'm really an idiot sometimes.' _she thought with an amused roll of her eyes. '_Who else could it be but Minako, anyways?'_

However, as Serena fully opened her eyes and looked down at the arm around her waist, the smile slid off her face at what she saw. The arm around wasn't small, white, or a mixture of dainty and muscular like she had expected it to be. Instead it was tan, muscular, firm, and much too hairy to be Minako's. If she didn't know better, she would have thought that it was a man's arm.

A harsh gasp escaped Serena's thought as she was suddenly pulled closer to the chest behind her. She could feel every inch of the chest now, due to her newfound closeness. The chest was completely muscular, bare, and _flat._ And, strangely enough, she had the briefest feeling of déjà vu as she was pressed up against it, as if she had come across it before.

'_Oh god, oh god. It _is _a man's arm.' _Serena thought to herself as her panic returned full force, somewhat dismissing the absurd idea that it was a familiar chest. A half-formed thought abruptly crossed the odangoed-haired girl's mind but she clung to it desperately, no matter how impossible it seemed.

'_Please, oh please let that only be Daddy. Please tell me that I somehow got away from Minako's apartment last night, ran home, and crawled into my parents bed. Please, please. I mean, maybe that's why I thought it felt familiar!'_

Serena's frantic hopes were dashed before she even had the chance to test them though. The man behind her snuggled up to her back, nuzzling her neck faintly. She then watched as he unconsciously -at least she prayed unconsciously- slid his hands down her arms before he reached her own hands that were still under her- '_no_ _his pillow'_, she thought with a wince and tearing of her eyes.

She was brought out of her terrifying thoughts as the man continued his movements. She watched in apprehension as the man mumbled something incoherently before pulling out her hands and threading them with his own.

All the man's actions seemed odd to the girl but it made her realize a few things. First, her father had stopped working out ages ago. This man, whoever he was, was very muscular and strong. Unless her father began taking steroids, he wouldn't be either muscular or strong for a while. Second, her dad never slept without a shirt on; he always complained it was too cold in the house for that, no matter the season.

The third thing she realized had her eyes beginning to water and for her breathing to become harsh in her panic. Looking around, she saw that she was in an unfamiliar room; it wasn't one in any of her friends homes or one in her own. And forth, and the worst observation by far, she wasn't in her school uniform anymore, instead she was dressed in a light blue man's dress shirt. _'Oh god, oh god. Where am I? How did I get here? What did this guy do!? Oh, god.'_

It wasn't until the man snuggled closer to her back and tightened his grip on her hands that Serena realized she needed to calm down before she unknowingly managed to wake him up. _'Come on, Serena.' _the blonde thought to herself as she grinded her teeth together to stop her crying and calm her harsh breathing. _'It's time to get out of here. There's no telling what he'll do if he wakes up while I'm trying to get away.'_

A abrupt thought had a strangled sob escaping the back of Serena's throat, no matter her efforts to stop it. _'There's no telling what he's _already _done.' _Horrifying scenarios began to play in the young girl's mind as she began to hyperventilate.

Desperation began to claw at Serena's mind as she frantically tried to shove the arm away from her and twist away all at the same time, but a sudden painful sensation all over her body had her gasping in pain and her stopping all movements.

"Oh, God." she gasped out as tears began to sting her eyes and a sob to escape her once more. She had forgotten all about the pain Rei and Luna had caused over the past few days in the light of her current predicament. The pain was even worse than she remembered it being. It felt as though she was being stabbed repeatedly all over her body.

A sudden unintelligible mumbling behind her had Serena stiffening in alertness and tightening her jaw to stifle any other words or noises that might escape her. _'I have to get out of her as fast as I can.'_ she thought to herself frantically. _'Now.'_

'_What am I gonna do? What am I gonna do?' _Serena chanted to herself as she fought against the sudden urge to vomit that overcame herThis was all becoming too much for her. First, she awakened to a strange man in bed with her, then discovered she had been undressed sometime by this strange man, had no idea where she was at, and to top it off, her body felt like it was being shredded into a million pieces.

'_No, don't think about it! Calm down!' _she reprimanded herself as she took a deep, shaking deep, hoping to calm the panic that began to envelop her again. _'I can worry and panic all I want when I'm out of here. Besides, I have to look on the bright side of things. I mean, I'm finally free from the scouts' hold on me. Now, I will be able to heal and stay conscious for more than a few hours at a time, right? Right, think positive!'_

With another deep shaky breath, Serena let herself believe her thoughts and relax slightly, her fear decreasing significantly. '_Yeah, I mean, this could all be a big misunderstanding, both with the senshi and this man, right? Of course I would never betray the princess and this man could have just found me--somehow-- and got me away and did nothing else. And he probably only undressed me to change by bandages and my uniform _**was **_ruined. Yeah, that's all that happen. Okay, now it's time to take action. Remember, I'm Sailor Moon! I have take care of myself! '_

Full of fierce determination now, Serena firmly pried her hands away from the man's own firm grip on them, praying he wouldn't awaken while she was at it. She wasn't able to get out of his hold though because as soon as she had freed her hands, the man suddenly released a noise akin to an annoyed, but oddly protective-like, growl before wrapping an arm around her waist again, pulling her back to his bare chest.

Grumbling under her breath in exasperation, the young blonde steeled herself against the pain she knew would come from her next movement and then twisted as far away from the man's hold as she could. Taking a few seconds to calm the tears that were threatening to fall from the painful move, she then dragged herself toward the edge of the bed.

Now only the man's fingers still had a hold of her. Of course, the fact that they were simply fingers didn't change the fact that they had an extremely tight and possessive hold on her waist. _'How am I gonna get out of this hold?'_ Serena thought to herself as she began thinking of ways to get out. A sudden idea had her grinning mischievously, all fear now evaporated. She _was _Sailor Moon, she _could _handle this.

With a determined nod of her head at the idea she had decided on, the young woman took a deep breath and released it all in an ear-piercing screech a few seconds later. Like she had hoped would happen, the screech caused the man to wake up immediately and fly into a sitting position and -most importantly- lose his possessive hold on her.

Not giving the man enough time to figure out what was going on, she quickly detangled herself from the bed sheets and dropped down to the floor. Without a second thought to the stabbing pain in her back, Serena then crawled her way under the bed, hoping there was enough room for her to fit.

She was hit with a stroke of luck. The floor beneath the bed was impossibly clean, as least in her opinion. Only a few forgotten items laid underneath; a belt, a pair of shoes, and what looked to be a comb. _'I wonder how he gets it so clean under here?' _she thought to herself in curiosity before shaking herself back to the dilemma at hand.

A sudden shifting from the bed above her had Serena chewing on her lip in apprehension. She had been so determined to just get off the bed and out of the man's hold that she hadn't thought farther in her planning. She hadn't let herself think far enough ahead to how she would get out of this room, and wherever else she was, without the man seeing her.

"Ugh." came a groan from above Serena as he shifted about the bed. Listening carefully, the blonde below tried to figure out if there was any familiarity to it. It was still too laced with sleep though, making it impossible to tell if she knew who the owner was. "I'm so sore. If I didn't know any better I'd think I participated in a triathlon."

When a pair of black sock-clad feet suddenly appeared in front of her, Serena had to stuff a hand over her mouth to stifle her involuntary gasp at the movement. She watched with wide blue eyes as the man moved further away from the bed, no doubt disoriented from sleep still.

'_Well, at least he wasn't completely naked.' _she thought with a sigh of relief when she noticed that the man had on dark blue sleeping pants. _'Maybe nothing did happen.'_

With that thought came the reminder that she herself was dressed in a man's dress shirt instead of her own school uniform, destroyed as it may have been. Looking down at herself, Serena saw how spots of blood had begun to seep through the thin shirt in random areas.

With a wince, Serena began to examine herself, trying to figure out how much damage had been done. To say she was surprised to discover that every wound was covered with a new bandage was an overstatement. And to top that off, it seemed as if one-third of her bruises had managed to heal since the last time she had seen them. Even some of the worst of the wounds, including many of the scorch marks Rei caused, she could see seemed to have healed faster than normal.

'_What in the world?' _she thought to herself in amazement as she continued to look over herself. It seemed that even though most of her injuries hadn't improved, the ones that had had healed much faster than what she was used to. _'I wonder if my senshi abilities have anything to do with this…'_

Serena had no idea why she seemed to have healed so fast, but she did know that whoever this man was, he seemed to have to great lengths to make sure she had been taken care of. Besides the new bandages, all the dried blood she remembered seeing on herself was gone, and she was positive that if she peeled off one of the bandages, she would find a cleaned wound as well. And, she thought as she buttoned back up the buttons she had unfastened, he had left on her undergarments.

"Thank goodness for that." she said with a sigh of relief as she finished fastening the last button of the shirt she was wearing.

A clatter on the other side of the room had Serena's eyes widening in fear. _'Please don't tell me that I said that out loud._' she thought frantically as she glanced toward where the man was on the other side of the room. A hanger and pair of jeans lay forgotten next to the man's feet, the man obviously frozen in place. _'Oh no. I did say that out loud!'_

"Who's there!?" she suddenly head the man call out. She couldn't help but think that it had a commanding tone to it, full of authority. The tone in his voice almost had her answering because it was that powerful and compelling. "I know you're there, so show yourself at once. There's no point in continuing to hide."

'_Hey, wait.' _Serena thought suddenly, her brow furrowing in thought. _' That voice is familiar. I know I've heard it before, but where?'_ When she couldn't come up with either a name or face to match the voice, Serena blew out an exasperated breath. _'Well, I guess I'm just have to find out for myself. Then I'll know if I'm safer than I thought or not.'_

Hoping that she wouldn't be caught, the curious blonde crawled over to the other side of the bed and hunkered down to the floor. Making sure that none of her long hair could be seen, she then peered up to get her first look at the strange man. Her eyes traveled up from the black socks, to the blue pants, to the bare chest, until she finally saw a _very _familiar face. A face that belonged to a certain man she just so happened to yell at on a daily basis.

'_Oh god, it's Darien!' _she thought to herself in shock. Her weight suddenly become too much for her forearms to bear and she dropped to the ground. She hardly even felt it though, she was too numb with shock. _'How did the jerk ward get me away from Minako!? If Rei, Luna, and Minako think this is a new type of torture to get me to confess to something I didn't do, it isn't funny!'_

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As Serena was dealing with the shock of finding herself in the unexpected company of the man she fought daily with, the said young man was warily looking about his room for the intruder.

He knew he shouldn't have dismissed the scream that awoke him. He had simply thought that it had been part of his already-forgotten dream at the time but that seemed not to be the case. There was an intruder in his apartment.

"Who's there!?" he called out once again, making sure to put enough steel behind his voice. He hesitantly bent down to pick up his forgotten jeans and the hanger they fell from. _'I guess it was a good thing that I was only gathering my clothing for after my shower. There's no telling what the intruder would have done if I had been in the shower already.'_

Slowly, Darien replaced the jeans in the closet before suddenly pushing back the clothing, making sure to look in every nook and cranny of the closet that someone could hide in. _'Hmm…No one in here.'_

With a furrowed brow, Darien glanced about his room, trying to discern if anything was missing or out of place. After a few sweeps of his eyes around the room though, Darien couldn't think of anything that was missing or out of place. His room was exactly in the same condition as he last remembered it being.

His textbooks were neatly placed in the bookshelf and not one seemed out of place; all his electronics- as minimum as they were- were still in their proper places, and, most importantly, there were no signs of searching or overturned pieces of furniture.

Of course, just because his bedroom hadn't been vandalized didn't mean the rest of his apartment hadn't been. With a bitten off curse, Darien spun on his heel and out of his bedroom to see if any had been destroyed in his house. Along the way to his living room, Darien stealthily looked in both the bathroom and the hall closet. Nothing was amiss or anyone hiding in either of the rooms though. They were both in the same condition he had last left them in.

'_Maybe I had imagined the voice?_' Darien thought to himself as he closed the bathroom door. '_There isn't any signs that anyone but me has been here. And I _**was **_half asleep at the time, I could have just thought I heard it._'

Just to make sure that no one had been or was in apartment though, the black-haired man decided to check the last two rooms before completely letting down his guard. It never hurt to be extra careful about this sort of thing. He didn't want to be lulled in a false sense of comfort before he was unexpectedly hit over the head or anything else of the sort.

It was the sight in the living room that convinced Darien that there had been someone in his apartment at one point or another. Whether they left or not was still a mystery but, by the looks of things, they couldn't of gotten far if they did in fact leave.

All around Darien's living room, pieces of his furniture had been rearranged and both of his first aide kits' possessions were scattered around on the floor and coffee table. On the top of the coffee table was a hand towel that he remembered had once been white but was now almost completely drenched in blood. A pair of bloody scissors were resting innocently on top of the towel, finishing the disturbing scene the objects made.

With a perplexed frown and wary stance, the jet-black haired man slowly made his way over to the bloody items. "Well doesn't this just scream horror movie?" he remarked dryly while looking this way and that around the room before picking up the bloody items. "I wonder where the ax murder is at now?"

As Darien made his way to the kitchen to see if its condition was similar to the living room's, he noticed a pile of bloody clothes on top of another towel on the floor beside the couch. Now extremely worried, not to mention very suspicious, he made his way back to where the clothing was. The clothing was beyond use and almost complete recognition but it reminded him strongly of the school uniform a odango-headed girl that he knew wore almost everyday.

At the mention of the high school girl he frequently argued with, Darien was suddenly hit with the memories of last night. "Shit." he whispered as he dropped brought his hands up in favor of holding his aching head. Stumbling his way to the couch, he dropped onto in unceremoniously. "How could I have forgotten something like that?"

As Darien sat there with his head in his hands, he couldn't stop his stomach from revolting at what he had seen and felt last night. He remembered waking up last night with a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach; him following those urgent sensations that told him would lead him to Serena; him arriving at the shrine in time to see Rei de-transform into Sailor Mars; Rei carrying an unconscious and battered odango-haired girl; him running up the steps to save Serena; and then _nothing_.

Try as he might to remember what had happened after that, he couldn't even remember a glimpse of anything. '_Just what happened after that? Why can't I remember anything after running up the stairs? I obviously got Odango away from Rei somehow and brought her here. Then I bandaged her up based on all the bloody… Serena! That's who the intruder is, she's still somewhere in the apartment.'_

With a wince, Darien looked over the side of the couch at the bloody clothing that lay in a pile on the floor. _'She shouldn't even be able to move with all those wounds I remember seeing. Let alone be awake.'_ With a sudden murderous glare, Darien swore viciously.

'_Damn that Rei. How could she have done this to Serena? I know one thing, Odango and I are going to have a nice, long chat so I can figure out what is going on. But, first thing first, I need to find Odango. She must have worked herself into a panic, waking up in an unfamiliar apartment.'_

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What Darien didn't realize about his last statement was how right he was. All throughout the time he had been looking for an intruder in his apartment, Serena had been worrying herself into despair. She had no idea how she had ended up in Darien's apartment and she wasn't sure if she even wanted to know.

'_All right, all right. I don't know how I got here, but what __**do **__I know? Okay, first, Darien somehow came across me last night and brought me here. Second, he actually took care of me and re-bandaged me. Third, he undressed me.' _At this, a bright red of embarrassment stained Serena's cheeks before she became enraged. Glaring murderously, she continued her thoughts as she adjusted herself into a more comfortable position underneath Darien's bed- a feat considering she had to lay down on her stomach so she wouldn't hit her head or hurt her back anymore than necessary.

'_That's right! That---that _**pervert **_undressed me! He might have been helping me but that doesn't change the facts. Wait until I heal, me and my side pack are coming right for your head, Darien Shields! Just you wait!' _

Suddenly Serena rolled her eyes in amusement and small grin unfurled on her face as she noticed she was shaking her fist in the air angrily. Considering the situation she had gotten herself in, it felt good to fall back on something so normal. '_There's nothing like threats of bodily harm to Darien to cheer me up.' _she thought with a giddy grin and silent chuckle.

Hearing the distant noise of Darien's heavy footsteps in the distance had Serena sobering up quickly and the smile dropping from her face. _'Come on, concentrate. What else do I know? Um…well, Darien seems to not remember I'm here with the way he's been looking around. And I know that I didn't have to work myself into a panic when I first woke up. Darien wouldn't do anything like _**that**

'_As much of an annoying jerk ward he is, he wouldn't rape someone.' _she thought positively as she once again began chewing on her bottom lip absently. '_And now I know why his chest felt so familiar. I'm always running into it on the way to school in the mornings. I'm surprised that I didn't notice it was him just from that. Who knew his clothing was hiding that much muscle though?_'

When Serena realized her last thoughts, she flushed a bright red in embarrassment again, right to her hair roots. _'I can't believe I just thought that. What's next? Me thinking Darien looked pretty cute when I peeked up at him, all soft and tired looking with sleep?'_

'_Ack! No, what are you thinking Serena!' _she chided herself with a light slap to her cheek. Immediately afterwards she released a startled -and very pained- gasp and grabbed her cheek, tears beginning to gather in her eyes. _'Oh god. That hurt. I forgot about that punch Sailor Mars gave me. That bruise should be pretty bad still.'_

In her pain, Serena didn't notice how Darien returned to his bedroom, intent on finding her. The black-haired man knew she had to be in his bedroom, there was just no where else she could be. He would have found her already otherwise . '_But I already looked in the closet, where else can you hide in here?_' he glanced around the room, taking in the small number of furniture. A dresser, a small desk, a bookshelf, a nightstand, a lamp, a bed…

The blue-eyed man grinned suddenly. He could see the end of a long blonde pigtail sticking up from under his bed. The Odango Atama had been hiding under his bed the whole time. _'But how to get her out? She probably has no clue where she even is.' _Darien frowned suddenly as a thought occurred to him_. 'Actually, she might know she's with me and that's why she is hiding. She could just not want to talk about last night. Whether she likes it or not though, we're going to talk about it.'_

A determined glint now present in his eyes, Darien crouched down to the floor and gently tugged on the end of the pigtail he could see. What happened next was almost to fast for Darien to comprehend. One minute a terrified and pained screech filled the air, then a small white foot came sailing out from under the bed and kicked him right in the chin. The next thing he knew he was lying on his back staring at his white ceiling.

"Oww." he rasped out as his head collided with the floor rather soundly, one hand coming up to cover his aching chin and the other to rub the back of his head. "Remind me to never do that again."

"What did you expect, jerk-face!?" retorted Serena as she pulled herself out from underneath the bed, tears running down her cheeks unbridled. "You scared me half to death for goodness sakes! You're lucky all I did was kick you! _And _you pulled my hair, do you know how much that _hurts_?"

"All I did was tug---!" Darien began to defend himself as he painfully lifted himself off the ground. He stopped mid-sentence when he saw the blonde's tears and her present condition though. _'Oh god, she looks worse than I remember. All those bruises and cuts…'_

"Oda- _Serena_." he corrected himself when he saw the blonde's watery glare at his nickname for her. "Look, I'm sorry alright! I shouldn't have done that."

"No kidding!" she yelled back as she purposely kicked him in the knee hard. When the blue-eyed man bent down to grab his knee in pain, she took the shoe she had brought out from under the bed and hit Darien in the head with it. "And _that's _for undressing me, you _**pervert**_!"

The blonde then raced out of the room, her only thoughts on how she was going to escape Darien's apartment and what his revenge was going to be when he finally got his wits back together. Spotting a balcony in the living room through her bleary eyes, she grinned suddenly and raced toward it.

The only warning she had of Darien's impeding attack was the holler of _"ODANGO!!" _echoing off the walls as she pulled open the balcony door. Stifling a scream, she turned around in time to see Darien hot on her feet, a annoyed glare planted firmly on his face. "Get back here, Odango! We're going to talk about what happened last night!"

'_Oh no we're not if I can help it.' _she thought to herself with a wince as she imagined the type of questions Darien would have. There was no telling what he saw last night. Wiping her tears away with the back of her hand, Serena determinedly faced Darien.

'_All right, here he comes. 1.….2.…...3!' _she thought as she slammed the door shut, giggling evilly as Darien crashed into it with a loud bang. _'I am so good.'_ she thought as she watched Darien stumble to the ground, a noticeable red bump forming on his forehead.

Without bothering to check to see if he was alright- he _did _have a hard head after all- the pigtailed girl began to climb down the fire escape, determined to get down to the streets below. _'Why, oh why, didn't I leave earlier?' _she reprimanded herself as she carefully made her way down the steps, wincing when the wounds on her back were jousted with her movements. _'If I had left sooner I could have avoided Darien!'_

"Odango, get back here!" came the sooner than expected yell, knocking Serena out of her thoughts roughly. Startled, she missed the next ladder step, causing her to lose her balance. The blonde could only watch in horror as the balcony a few feet above got further and further away. Her scream was cut short as she crashed down onto the balcony she had just been climbing to a few feet below, landing on her injured back.

Tears began streaming down Serena's face rapidly as she lay prone on the balcony. She screamed again as she tried to turn over so she could lay on her stomach. The movement was too painful for her however, she flopped back down on her back, sobs clogging her throat. _'Oh dear god. Make it stop!'_ she pleaded as she tried to fight against the blackness that was creeping into her vision.

Vaguely she heard Darien scream her name but she paid him no heed. She groaned in pain as a large weight fell upon the balcony she was on and jolted her wounds once more. Opening bleary eyes, she watched as a black blob slowing crawled over to her motionless figure. When the figure gently turned her over onto her stomach, she could do no more than whimper in pain.

"Shh…It's alright, Serena. Shh…Go ahead and rest. Shh…" came a soft voice as she felt cool hands gently smoothing back on bangs. _'Dar…ien.' _she thought sleepily as she let his surprisingly soft words and actions lull her into a restful sleep. With a slight smile on her face, Serena let herself welcome the darkness around her as the smell of roses invaded her senses.

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It was almost forty-five minutes later that Darien finally allowed himself to relax. Letting himself fall into a chair that he had pulled in from the living room, he leaned his head against the back of it and glanced at the girl lying in the bed in front of him.

Suddenly his eyes, that were unknowingly beginning to burn a fiery gold, narrowed as he remembered all the injuries he had discovered on the girl. After Serena had lost awareness, he had power jumped them both back to his balcony before he had gently placed her on his bed. Then he had automatically set to work on accessing her injuries.

What he saw had had him clenching and unclenching his jaw in fury as he fought against the overwhelming desire to have a few choice words with Sailor Mars and maybe even throw a few steel tip, thorny roses her way. Even the newfound knowledge that the fiery senshi was the Rei Hino didn't calm his fury, if anything it made it even worse. For someone to claim they were close friends with Odango and do _this _to her was inconceivable.

The sight of all the numerous infected cuts, burns, and finger-shaped bruises had been the only thing holding the black-haired man back. As much as he had wanted to hunt Rei down, he knew he couldn't with Serena in the condition she had been in. So instead, he had called upon what little bit of patience and calm he had left and began to work.

He had been relieved to see that he had obviously taken care of her wounds the night before, even going so far as to stitch up her worst injuries. He was also glad to see that the fall she had suffered hadn't injured anything else or opened any of her injuries again. Nonetheless, it would take her at least a month to heal completely, especially the large slash on her back.

Groaning quietly, Darien glanced down at his fingers as he flexed them experimentally. All throughout his task, he had been hoping beyond hope that he would be able to use his golden healing sparks. Unfortunately, the sparks seemed to only work when he himself was seriously injured; no matter how hard he tried he couldn't use them on Serena.

Once or twice though, he had spied a few golden sparks dancing across his fingertips, like they wanted to come out and heal Serena themselves as well. Nevertheless when he tried to call forth the sparks they disappeared once again and hadn't made another appearance.

'_Why couldn't you have worked?' _he couldn't help but think bitterly before sighing in exhaustion. As he watched the now peacefully sleeping and re-dressed Serena through half-lidded eyes he had an odd feeling of déjà vu. He felt as though he had watched Serena sleeping countless times, not all of them peaceful however. Many times, he felt, were similar to tonight.

On the border of unconsciousness and awareness, no matter how hard Darien fought to stay awake, a vision came to him unbidden. All at once he found himself leaning against a grand double-door doorway in a large room furnished in different shades of green, blue, gold, and splashes of silver. As Darien looked about the room, he noticed he was in a sitting room of some sort. A gold and navy blue couch, a pair of intricately-carved wooden chairs, and a coffee table sat a little bit in front of him and another pair of smaller, double-doors stood open to the right of that.

As Darien walked into the revealed room, he realized that he was in a bedroom- a royal's by the looks of things. To his far left stood a large 3-panel mirror, outlined with what looked to be real sapphire, emerald, and gold designs, an enormous oak armoire stood only a few feet right of him, a large dressing screen depicting the outdoors stood only a few feet away from that, and in the very center of the room rested an enormous four-post canopied bed, a wall of windows behind it.

As Darien began to move about the room and examine it more, he became firm in his belief that it was a royal's room. Coming to a smaller room -a closet more than likely- that stood walled off from everything else, he peeked inside. He discovered it was filled with cloaks, stunning portions of armor, jewel encrusted swords and throwing knives, jeweled fastenings, a gold circlet, enough clothing to clothe an army, and everything else one might need.

The only well-worn items in the closet seemed to be the simpler pieces though- tunics, pants, shirts, and leather boots among them; many of the grander items looked like they'd never been worn. Obviously whoever lived in this room either didn't spend a lot of time here or care for any of the luxurious items.

'_At the most,'_ Darien thought as he looked at everything, _'they must sleep in the bed, get dressed, and leave.' _Walking toward the bed, the blue-eyed man finally took notice of the shadowy figure moving about on the bed through the closed canopy. _'Shit.' _he thought as his hand absently flicked out Tuxedo Mask cane. _'Why did I let my guard down? It's not like me to feel so calm and comfortable in a room. It's not like I belong here.'_

He watched in apprehension as the shadowing figure began tossing and turning, seemingly fighting against an invisible phantom. He was able to breathe a sigh of relief moments later though when they suddenly began to calm down and stopped struggling. _'Now, let's find a way out of here.' _he thought as he finally took notice of the cane in his hand and willed it back into his subspace pocket. He had just turned around when the person behind him screamed. _"__**No! Stop it!**__"_

'_Hey, that sort of sounds like…' _the dark-haired man thought as he strode toward the bed and pulled back the transparent-gold curtains. "Serena." he whispered in shock. His jaw went slack as he gazed at the figure in the bed. Sleeping on top of the sea of blue and green colored pillows, silver and gold colored throws, and navy blue bedding and blankets, was a beautiful- _familiar_- girl dressed in some of the finest clothing he had ever seen.

It was Serena, but it wasn't at the same time. Her hair seemed more silver then before, blending in perfectly with the golden-blonde that was already present. And it was also flowing freely instead of bounded in her usual 'odangos'. She was dressed in a beige and dark green satin-looking dress, a stunning yet simple design to it. There was an aura of power and grace around her that blended in the innocence that was usually there. _'She looks just like nobility. I wonder if this is her room. But then again, I don't remember seeing any feminine clothes in that closet.'_

As Serena snuggled deeper into the pillow she was lying on, Darien's attention was immediately drawn to the left cheek that was now presented to him. _'What in the world.' _he thought as he caught sight of something through the hair on her face. Gently brushing the hair away, he drew in a sharp breath. There, in plain sight, were three very distinct scratches on her face, a large bruise swelling behind them. If he didn't know better, he would say that it looked as if a woman had slapped Serena with her nails.

With a frown, the dark-haired man softly ran his fingers over the scratches. Seconds later however, he guiltily snatched his hand back when Serena flinched at even that slight touch. Concerned, he watched as the girl's brow started to furrow in what looked to be worry- or possibly pain- and for her to start whimpering and seeming to reach out for something in her sleep. He observed her in silence for a few moments, hoping that she would quiet back down on her own. He knew she wouldn't though when she suddenly cried out in pain as though physically struck and she started crying with everything she had.

Without even thinking, Darien automatically climbed onto the bed to reach Serena and lifted the girl to rest against his chest and lap. As if possessed, he immediately began issuing soft shushing noises and whispering to her while rubbing her back and arms comfortably at the same time. Luckily after a few minutes of his ministrations she managed to calm down again and snuggled deeper into his stomach while releasing a reassured and peaceful sigh. Waiting in apprehension and silence for what seemed to be an hour, Darien finally allowed himself to relax. It seemed that Serena was finally sleeping peacefully once more and was having no more nightmares.

Not even thinking about his position or that of Serena's, Darien allowed his body to completely relax and for sleep to claim his stressed body for a much needed reprieve. As he fell asleep he didn't notice that the vision around him started to fade away, leaving the dark-haired man curled around the petite blonde on his bed, back in his own apartment. As soon as his eyes fell closed and he joined Serena in sleep, a silver barrier instantly started to glow over the couple, protecting them both from the ominous night.

A few hours later, neither of the slumbering pair were aware of the golden sparks that sprang to life from Darien fingertips or the way that they silently moved across Serena's body, slowly healing more of her wounds.

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Around 7 o'clock, around the time Darien' healing sparks had sprung back to life on Serena and they were both still peacefully sleeping in his apartment, slight tremors rippled throughout the Earth. Simultaneously, powerful storms started to develop in the center of the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Oceans, wreaking havoc on the water and sea life before they stopped within minutes, leaving behind the calm sea.

In countries on the other side of the world 6.9 magnitude earthquakes ended just as quickly as they started, leaving behind confused people and scientists in their wake. The planet as a whole started to become uneasy and was desperately trying to reach out to its protector. It was to no use though, the planet's pleas were never heard as darkness swallowed up the telepathic cries and continued to pound mercilessly into the Earth's core.

"Did you feel that too Zoi?" Jadeite questioned softly as he looked up from the documents he had been looking over and toward the dirty-blonde reading a novel on the other side of the room.

"So it just wasn't my imagination?" the green-eyed man asked solemnly while putting down his book and walking toward the giant window of his hotel suite. Seconds later, Jadeite joined his comrade and looked out at the seemingly peaceful night. Both men knew that wasn't the case though. The darkness was what gave the Dark Kingdom the cover it needed to work their sinful ways in secret. And those ways were becoming more violent and dangerous as the days passed.

Earth was already becoming uneasy and troubled because of the force of the Dark Kingdom's attacks and it needed it's king to protect the planet again. But that's were there was a problem lied, the King had died ten thousand years ago and had not yet made a reappearance.

"But what do those tremors mean for us and everyone else?" questioned Jadeite looking toward the somber Zoisite. Both knew that the simultaneous tremors they felt around the world were not a normal occurrence and that could only mean more trouble, but there was no telling what that trouble would be.

"I'm not sure. I just know it reaffirms the fact that we don't have much time left. Earth is becoming even more perturbed and it is only a matter of time before it starts to lash out at everything in order to protect itself. And you know what it means if the Earth starts to lash out."

"Worldwide chaos. Violent storms that will wash away all islands, the climate will undergo traumatic changes, the polar ice caps will melt and oceans will rise, the temperature will fluctuate drastically, deserts will become frozen wastelands, anything can and will go wrong. It is similar to what scientists consider the effects of _'global warming' _areI just know there would be another great disaster." replied Jadeite absently as he began reliving the Great Island -_Atlantis's_- fall when the King had died.

It seemed like just yesterday he had been watching the terrified citizens screaming out to be saved and being unable to save them all as he watched the violent waves swallow up everyone and everything leaving only the open ocean behind. _'Those poor people, having lost their lives and their Great Island to become only myths, stories to be told at bedtime. No one will ever know the true extent of their culture.'_

"Exactly. Everything you said and more will happen. We need to contact the King _soon _Jadeite. More importantly though, we need to discover what Beryl's plans are. Otherwise there will be no hope for us anymore and Beryl will win. King or not." replied Zoisite sorrowfully as he gazed out at the night sky apprehensively. He couldn't help but think that there was something…_off _about the night; there was something in the air that hinted at a significant change. _'What is happening out there? Does it have anything to do with Beryl or it is something else? Something to do with Endymion?'_

"But how would we be able to learn her plan? It took us this long to find Endymion for Terra's sake!" retorted Jadeite as he too turned to look at the sky. He couldn't help but glare though as he thought about all the dangers that were waiting to befall the Earth and her unaware citizens. _'They're all so helpless…We can't protect them all.'_

"We have to do everything we can, Jadeite." answered Zoisite as he turned away from the window, dismissing all thoughts of the strange sensations in the air. If there was something significant transpiring, then the Commander would notify them. "Even if it means doing the impossible. Just as long as we get things done."

"Yeah. Just as long as we get things done." came the cryptic reply as Jadeite watched as the rain began to mournfully fall onto the ground. He couldn't help but close his eyes in sorrow, instinctively knowing that this wasn't a peaceful rain. The Earth was once again crying out for her son, having been saddened when she didn't receive a response yet again.

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Finished: 11/19/07 Posted: 11/21/07 12:55-ish

So, what'd you think? REVIEW, _please_. I'm sad that so many people seem to like the story- based on the number of those who have favorited me and/or the story and the hits for individual chaps.- and them not even reviewing to say, "nice, adding." or _something_.

For all of you who have remained faithful to the story and reviewed though, I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

So, we have Darien/Serena interactions finally! Yeah! I loved how she hit him on the head and slammed the balcony door in his face, that was priceless, even for me. Lol ) I want to know, what did _**you **_guys thought of her reactions though.

All right, I hoping the next chap will come out way earlier this time around, I even have 7-8 pages down and that's half a normal chapter for me. And that's a promise people! It won't take 3 months this time around, at the very least a month like normal. The goal is with 2-3 weeks though.

On the last note, happy holidays to everyone out there!


	13. Chapter 13

-1Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

Hello there everyone! I worked my butt off to finish this chapter early for all of you! Think of it as my apology for the incredibly long wait for the last chapter. This one is even longer to boot, yay! Though it doesn't have Serena/Darien action this time around. I'm glad everyone seemed to enjoy that! I hope to have some more in upcoming chapters.

I hope you like this chapter. I exceptionally enjoyed writing this chapter personally, though I have no idea why since all the chapters are my favorite. ;)

And remember to REVIEW please. It only takes a moment! Even review if your simply say "Nice story. Adding." It makes me happy, people! _**Please**_. I sincerely thank everyone who have so far, and to all of you that haven't but have still kept with the story! _**Thank you!**_

Onto the story!!

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"How could you let this happen?!" came a furious voice from a pacing onyx-colored cat. "I trusted you to make sure that Serena would be taken care of!"

It had been two and a half days since that night the new Dark Kingdom general had kidnapped-or _retrieved _that is- Serena, and Luna had yet to calm down and realize that Rei hadn't been able to single-handedly stop that man from taking Serena. The man had almost chocked the life out of her and left a deep cut across her neck- both of which could have easily killed her. Not to mention the minor concussion Rei had received after being bashed into the wall, not once but twice.

It would have been impossible for the raven-haired girl or her alter ego to retrieve Serena by herself but Luna couldn't seem to grasp that concept. All the sailor senshi together would have been incredibly lucky to even stop that man, let alone defeat him. The memory of all that energy and power surrounding the golden-eyed man still made Rei cringe as she relived the mental onslaught of power.

"--- can't believe it! What were you thinking in the first place to be de-transforming outside! For all we know that general could be telling everyone in the Dark Kingdom Rei Hino is Sailor Mars! If Serena hasn't already for that matter! How could you have been so careless!? More importantly _why _didn't you call for backup!? All four of you girls might have been able to stop him together! And--"

'_Why won't she stop?'_ Rei thought to herself miserably. Even after almost two days of constant complaining, Luna still had several factors of incompetence she still felt the need to point out- _repeatedly_.

As Rei half-listened to Luna's ranting, she pinched the bridge of her nose trying to delay the migraine that had been forming. _'I really need to meditate to sooth myself. I had thought that after constantly complaining while I stayed home yesterday, all her nagging would have left her system.'_ Unfortunately for the school girl, there seemed to be no end in sight.

After Luna had arrived and found Rei unconscious on the floor early Monday morning, she had taken it upon herself to relocate to Rei's shrine instead of Serena's house- where she had previously been living ever since Sailor Moon awakened. Since then, Rei hadn't had a moment to herself besides the short reprieve when she went to school today. Otherwise Luna had been constantly following her and ranting. It was a wonder that Serena hadn't thrown the cat out into the streets in all the time that Luna had been staying with her.

'_At least I'll be able to get another small break from her when I leave for the arcade.' _Rei couldn't help but think happily. _'Too bad I had to come home to change first though, otherwise I could have avoided all this.' _Glancing toward the black clock on her dresser, she saw that she should be leaving soon if she wanted to make it on time. Shuffling through her closet, Rei pulled out a dark red turtleneck sweater and pulled it over her undershirt, satisfied when the material hid the rather large bandage that was covering the bruises and cut on her neck.

'_Good thing it's fall so people won't think to question my choice in attire. I wouldn't have gotten away with hiding the bandage if it'd been summer. It's hard enough trying to hide it with my school uniform. I guess it's a good thing the Headmistress believed my story about becoming sick because of the unexpected rain. It was the only way she let me wear my scarf all day in class. Tomorrow I have to figure out another way though, otherwise she'll send me home and call grandfather to come home early from his priest convention.'_

"--I still can't believe how irresponsible you were! You have no excuse for de-transforming outside! If it had been m--!" Luna's continuous rants flooded back to Rei as she spun around to face the furious feline.

"Luna!" came Rei's sharp voice, stopping the cat in mid-sentence. "I understand that I made a mistake in de-transforming outside. I admit to it and am sorry I did not think things through all the way. You have to understand though that I hadn't expected a Dark Kingdom general to show up the way he did! I did what I thought was right at the time, so let it be!

"Now, if you don't mind I'm meeting the others at the arcade and I don't want you following me. Do something besides complaint while I'm gone _please_. Like figure out a way to hide the doorway. I don't want Grandpa to come back home and the door still be in plain sight, I'm pretty sure he would become suspicious if he sees it."

With that being said, Rei furiously stalked up to her mirror to make sure the bandage over the cut on her cheek was in place before haughtily marching out of her room, grabbing her umbrella and jacket in the process. All the while, the raven-haired girl studiously avoided the glaring eyes of the enraged cat behind her as she left her home.

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While Rei had been musing to herself and half-listening to Luna's complaints, across town in an apartment building by the park, a certain blue-eyed man was just beginning to awaken. This time upon his awakening however, Darien Shields immediately remembered his current houseguest. _'Serena.' _he thought to himself as he instantly flew into a sitting position, momentarily making himself dizzy. _'Ugh. Let's not do that again.'_

Once he got his wits back, he began sweeping his eyes about the room, looking for any signs of the missing blonde-haired schoolgirl. _'Where is she? I'm sure she was on the bed when I finally fell asleep. I remember watching her before that dream…' _As thoughts of the dream last night began to plague his mind, the black-haired couldn't help but think that it had felt too real, too familiar to simply be a dream. _'No, now's not the time to think about that. I have to find Odango before she hurts herself anymore.'_

Turning his attention to the task back at hand, Darien ran his hands over the rumpled sheets and bedding to the side of him. _'It's cold. She's been gone for some time already. I slept right through her leaving.' _With a frustrated groan, the blue-eyed man tiredly dragged himself out of the bed so he could began to look for the girl in the off-chance that she was still somewhere in the apartment.

Not even ten minutes later, Darien sat down heavily on his couch, having had no luck in finding any signs of the girl. _'Damn Odango, she ran away again. She's not going to be able to avoid me forever though. Right after I take a shower, dress, and pour a nice cup of coffee I'm going to go look for her. She can't avoid me forever and we __**are **__going to talk about what happened. She can keep her head start for a little while longer.'_

Stifling a tired yawn, Darien absently reached for his television remote and pressed the on button. Instantly he was bombarded with a much too cheerful voice for his brooding thoughts. _**"Good day, Tokyo! This is Akane Hekino with your up-to-the hour news."**_

Darien scoffed at the woman's overly cheerful mood. _'How can someone be so cheerful at…' _momentarily his eyes wandered toward the corner of the screen to see the current time. He blinked at what he saw. _'3:30 pm. Well, I guess that makes sense for her to be cheerful then.'_

Bewildered, Darien stood up and walked to the balcony doors to look outside, as if to affirm the time himself. Drawing back his curtains, he was surprised to discover it was steadily raining. Black storm clouds filled the sky, blocking out any signs of the sun as rain continued its unwavering descent to the ground. He watched as people ran about, some with umbrellas and others without. He winced in sympathy as a speeding car rushed down the streets, spraying an unsuspecting person on the sidewalk with water.

"Strange how I didn't notice it was raining. Usually I can tell right away. I guess I must have been really tired this time." The blue-eyed man mused to himself as he made sure his balcony doors were tightly sealed shut before drawing back the curtains. "I wonder how long it's been raining though. Those puddles out there are pretty big." With a shake of his head to dispel his thoughts, Darien turned back to the news in time to catch the end of a story.

"_**--pursuit of the mysterious attacker of a local early Monday morning. Police advise to call the authorities immediately if you see him and not approach him as he is considered armed and dangerous. No suspects have been reported at this time."**_

'_I wonder what happened. It always seems like the police are looking for someone nowadays.' _Darien thought to himself as he headed toward the kitchen to start his coffee maker. He continued to listen to the chipper newswoman as he searched for his missing coffee pot.

"_**In other news, forecasters are predicting an end to the continuous rain that started unexpectedly Monday night. So, there will be no need to cancel any plans tonight as the skies are expected to clear by 8 pm. This had been your up-to-the hours news for Wednesday November 12th with Akane Hekino. Enjoy the rest of your day Tokyo and be sure to stay dry!"**_

'_Well, I guess that answers my question of how long the rain lasted.' _Darien thought to himself in amusement before the rest of the woman's words were absorbed. _'Wait, Wednesday November 12th? Wasn't it just Sunday, the 9th?'_

Glancing up from his position as he momentarily stopped looking through his bottom cabinets, Darien sought and found the calendar hanging beside the kitchen entrance. The last marked off day had been Sunday, just as he had thought. Thinking back, Darien remembered x-ing the box out as he had fixed himself a late night snack. That had been less than an hour before he had woken up with those strange sensations and had followed them toward the shrine where he had seen Sailor Mars.

Immediately Darien steered himself from that train of thought, lest him become angry with Rei again. _'It must be Wednesday then. But then how long was I asleep, and Odango for that matter?'_

Running on autopilot as he thought back to the previous days, Darien placed his newly found coffee pot in its proper place and began the task of starting the brew. _'All right. So, early Monday morning I came across Rei and Serena. Something happened which involved me somehow getting Odango away from Rei, bringing her here and bandaging her up. Then I feel asleep sometime before waking up because my unexpected houseguest screamed. But what day was it?'_

Absently Darien checked the coffee pot once more before walking down to his hall closet to pull out a towel for his shower. Walking into the bathroom, he began his shower and adjusted the temperature before beginning to undress.

'_That had to have been Monday, because I remember it being early afternoon when I was bringing Odango back to my apartment after she had fell. I was just too tired for it to have been Tuesday; I felt like I slept for only a few hours at the most. Which would have been the case because I had patched Odango up.'_

The now-soapy haired man stood under his showerhead and began rubbing in the shampoo that he had just added. He closed his eyes and tipped his head back as he let his mind continue to wander.

'_Alright. So, I'm positive that it was Monday when Serena and I woke up the first time. Then I was awake for a few more hours while I dealt with the 'intruder' and then bandaging Odango again. I feel asleep and woke up not even an hour ago. Which means I slept from Monday night to Wednesday afternoon.'_

Darien released a frustrated groan as he realized that Serena probably _did _leave a long time ago, he just slept right through it like he had previously thought. _'I can't blame her though. If I was in her situation, I would have done the same thing. Run when the opposition isn't looking, let alone awake. She probably thought I would eat her alive with all my questions.'_

Five minutes later, Darien stepped out of the shower freshly cleaned for the day, or what was left of it anyway. The blue-eyed man made his way to his bedroom and got dressed quickly, picking a pair of blue jeans and a long sleeve gray shirt for a change. Once he was dressed he looked about his room before spotting his wallet on top of his dresser. He shoved it in its proper pocket before grabbing a pair of socks out of one of the drawers.

As the man made his way into the living room, he glanced out of his balcony door to see that it was still raining with no signs of stopping. _'Seems like the forecaster is going to be wrong again. Mother Nature is always unpredictable.'_

As Darien replaced the curtain he pulled back into its proper position, he spotted his leather boots beside his desk. Once he had them in his possession, he sat down on his couch and hurriedly pulled on his gray and white socks before pulling on the boots. _'All right. Time to grab some coffee before I head out to the arcade. Knowing Odango, she just might be there talking with Motoki or something. If I'm lucky that is.'_

As he was pouring some coffee into a thermos, a horrifying thought occurred to the dark-haired man. _'Odango might be at the arcade.'_ That in itself wasn't the horrifying thought, since it _was _what he was hoping for. It was the thought that Rei might _also _be there at the arcade that had Darien so alarmed. _'There's no telling what Rei might do if she spots Serena. She could try to continue on with what she was doing Monday. If she hasn't already seen Serena that is. Shit!'_

Racing back to his living room, Darien only stopped to grab his keys, leather jacket, and umbrella before he was racing out of the apartment, barely managing to remember to lock the door in his rush. He didn't give a second thought to his thermos of coffee that still sat on his kitchen counter or to the television playing a game show in the front room.

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'_Damn rain.' _Rei thought to herself as she glowered down at her soggy clothing. _'This just isn't my day.'_ First she woke up to nagging cat, then had to lie to the Headmistress at school, received a C- on her Japanese report, came home to receive more nagging, then the wind had began blowing on her way to the arcade, causing the rain to drench her even more in the process.

"At least it's a good thing I brought my long coat and my umbrella. They managed to block a lot of the water." The raven-haired girl grumbled to herself as she stopped under the awning of the Crown Arcade. Quickly she shut her umbrella and shook the loose water out before walking through the sliding doors in front of her.

The first thing Rei did when she walked into the arcade was look toward the counter to see if her current crush, a certain raven-haired college student, was there. Sadly though, she only found Motoki alone, wiping off the counter with his white and blue dishrag.

Rolling her eyes at Motoki's favoritism to that rag, Rei continued to where her fellow senshi were waiting at their usual table in the corner. She glared seconds later however when she spotted a familiar black-cat talking quietly with Makoto. _'She must have left right after me. So much for figuring out a way to hide that doorway in my room today.'_

"Good afternoon Rei. Nice of you to finally join us." came the slightly-annoyed greeting from Luna once Rei reached the table. The raven-haired girl simply narrowed her eyes at the cat's tone before she sat across from Makoto, Ami beside the brunette and against the window. Leaving Luna to be sitting in the middle between Makoto and Ami.

"Sorry I'm late guys. I was trying to avoid as many cars as I could on the way here. I swear, they don't care if they spray anyone with water or not. This poor man walking in front of me got drenched when a car sped down the road. The driver didn't even bother to stop to apologize or anything!" Rei justified herself as she placed her red umbrella on the seat beside her before pulling off her soaked black jacket and placing in on top of the umbrella.

"It's fine Rei." Makoto replied with a careless smile as she swung an arm over the top of the booth. "I just arrived here a few minutes ago myself. The rain sure is pouring, huh?"

"No kidding. It has almost been two days already, you would think that it would have slowed down. If anything though, it seems to get worse. " Rei said with a sigh. "I hope it ends soon, I'm not very fond of the rain."

"It's probably because you are the senshi of fire. Water and fire doesn't mix very well." supplied the previously quiet Ami as she sipped something from the mug in her hands. Rei guessed it was hot chocolate.

"You're probably right, Ami. I've never thought of that before." Rei replied, her violet eyes thoughtful. "It does make sense though."

"So Rei, what's this emergency meeting about? And why are we here instead of your place? Does it have something to do with you not being around the past few days?" Makoto asked curiously. Her brow crinkled as she finally took notice of the bandage on the priestess's cheek. Her hair had done a fairly good job of hiding it. "And why is there a bandage on your cheek?"

"Oh, that." Rei said uneasily, unconsciously moving her hand to cover the bandage. _'Damn general. I'm just glad the headmistress never asked what happened. I can just imagine what other lies I would have to create.' _"Oh, I got into a fight with someone. This was their reminder for me. I guess that's what it's supposed to mean anyways."

"What?" came the startled question from both Makoto and Ami. "What fight? Why didn't you call us!? Was it Maerina again?"

"Luna didn't tell you?" Rei couldn't help but ask bitterly. After all the complaining the cat had done, it was a surprise that she hadn't already begun naming all her mistakes to the others. _'It would be just like Luna to do that too.'_

"_**No**_I think I would remember if she told us something like that!" Makoto declared fiercely as she slammed her hands down on the table top. When she saw Ami making gestures to her left, she glanced around to see everyone glaring at her outburst. With a shrug, she settled back down into the booth but not without a short glare back to their audience.

When she was sure no one was listening again, she turned her attention back to Rei. _'What is going on nowadays? Did she get into a fight with Serena or something? I guess this must be what the emergency meeting is about.'_

"Well--" began Ami hesitantly. She subtly leaned closer against the window on her right when Makoto turned fierce green eyes on her. _'She looks so betrayed. This mess really is causing a rift between everyone. Makoto and I are already against Rei, Minako, and Luna; even if they don't know it yet. I don't want Makoto to lose her faith in me like she has in them.'_

"What did Luna tell you, Ami?" Makoto asked, making Ami wince at the hurt tone hidden in her voice. _'She should feel guilty if she's been hiding something from me.' _Makoto thought with a frown.

"She didn't really tell me anything." the blue-haired girl explained hurriedly. "Luna arrived just before you did and was mumbling to herself about generals and Serena. She wouldn't tell me anything further when I asked though. She said that Rei would be able to tell us all when she arrived."

"Oh." Makoto said simply, blinking at Ami before smiling sheepishly. "Then you're in the dark as much as I am then."

Ami smiled when she heard her friend's apologetic tone. _'We _**are **_in the dark about everything though.' _ Ami realized with a start. Even though they knew why the others were wary of Serena, they didn't understand how they could believe that Serena- sweet innocent Serena- would be a traitor. _'And there's no telling what else they are hiding from us.'_

It was Rei's question that snapped both Makoto and Ami's attention back to her. "So…Luna hasn't told either of you guys anything yet?"

"No." came the simple confirmation from Ami as she fiddled with the tip of her mug distractedly. "She wanted you to tell us."

"All right, I guess it would be better if I was the one to tell you." Rei said as she blew out her breath in a rush, ruffling her bangs in the process. Suddenly she looked around the arcade, taking in the fact they were missing a member. "But before I do, where's Minako? She should be here by now."

"Oh, she said she would be running late." supplied the blue-haired girl helpfully, catching Rei's wandering eyes. "She called me on the communicator when I first arrived." Ami's brow furrowed as she recalled something about her conversation with the girl. "She sounded…worried. Or perhaps, stressed. In any case, she didn't sound like herself."

'_Oh, I bet she sounded worried.'_ Rei thought wickedly, unable to stop a small smirk from sliding onto her face. Neither she nor Luna had told Minako that they had been the ones to take Serena out of her apartment. It had been almost three days already and they hadn't heard a single word from Minako about Serena being missing. The older girl must have been looking for Serena in all that time and was trying to avoid alerting either Rei or Luna about her dilemma. _'And now it seems like she's trying to avoid us altogether.'_

Rei's thoughts darkened as she realized _why _Serena had been gone. _'Serena is off with that damn Dark Kingdom general anyways.' _Self-consciously she touched her neck, where the bandages were hidden underneath the sweater.

The dark-haired girl was brought of her brooding thoughts when she heard Makoto ask Ami if Minako had said what time she would be here. The blue-eyed girl thought for a minute before replying. "She said she would get here about fifteen minutes after four if I'm not mistaken. She said that she had some unfinished business that needed to be taken care of immediately "

Almost simultaneously, all eyes turned toward the clock that rested on the wall behind the counter. It read 3:57. With a sigh, Ami turned back but not before noticing Luna was missing. "You guys, did you see where Luna went?" she asked curiously. She couldn't recall the last time she had seen the cat.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Rei asked curiously as she leaned over the table, confirming the fact herself. When she saw the black cat was no longer between Makoto and Ami, she frowned in concentration. "That's odd. Do you guys remember when the last time you saw her was?"

"I know she was here when you first arrived." the green-eyed girl said as she looked under the table for the black cat. She looked back toward her companions when she didn't spot any signs of Luna. "I don't remember her being here after you said you were in a fight though. Maybe she left then?"

"Maybe." muttered Rei. _'She probably made a run for it when she saw the direction the conversation was heading in. That'd be just like her.'_ "It doesn't matter anyways though. I can tell you everything myself."

"Do you want to wait for Minako?" suggested Ami. "That way you won't have to repeat yourself twice."

"Yeah, you have not even twenty minutes to go." supplied Makoto as she glanced at the clock again. "It probably won't take that long for her to get here anyways."

"I'll wait then. If she doesn't show up in fifteen minutes though, I'll just tell you anyways." A quick moment to her left caught Rei's attention. Looking through the window to the raining world outside, she grinned happily when she spotted the dark-haired man she had been looking for earlier.

Eagerly she followed him with her eyes, subtly moving toward the window to catch his destination, lest it not be the arcade as she hoped. She watched as the blue-eyed man stopped under the awning to close his umbrella and shake the loose water out, just as she had done not long ago. She watched long enough for him to walk through the arcade doors and disappear from her sight.

"How do you think you did on your history test today, Makoto?" Rei heard Ami ask the brunette as she glanced toward the inside entrance of the arcade. She followed Darien with her eyes once again as he made his way to the counter and sat down on one of the stools. She turned her attention back toward her friends once she saw him talking to Motoki.

"Ugh. Don't even bother asking Ames." groaned the green-eyed girl as she rubbed a hand over her face tiredly. "I know I got a 65 or less. I regretted watching that movie marathon as soon as Mr. Katogo began passing out the tests."

"What was the test on again?" Ami asked curiously. Rei watched with bored eyes as Ami sipped her hot chocolate once more. "I can't recall."

"Oh, the discovery of America. I can't believe I couldn't remember anything! We've been learning about it for weeks." sighed Makoto as she rested her chin on her hand, facing Ami.

"You could have asked for my help." Ami said thoughtfully. "Even though, I'm not in your class, I could have helped you. My AP class just studied the Americas last month."

"You couldn't have told me sooner, Ames!?" questioned the brunette with another groan. "That could have helped me so much!"

Rei rolled her eyes at the conversation as she glanced at the clock once more. She grumbled to herself when she saw it was only 4:05. _'This is taking forever. Minako must really be worried about what Luna and I are going to say. Oh well, better use this time while I can. The others seem to be in no hurry.'_

"Hey, guys--" the raven-haired girl said as she interrupted her friends' conversation, drawing their attention away from one another. "Do you want anything? I'm going to get a hot tea from Motoki."

"Huh? Oh, no thanks Rei. I don't need anything." came Makoto's reply as she watched Rei get up from the booth, waiting for their answers patiently.

"I don't need anything either, Rei. I got my hot chocolate shortly before you arrived." smiled Ami as she gestured toward her mug. "Thank you for the offer though."

"All right then." Rei said as she smiled back at Ami before turning away from the two, intent on getting to the counter to talk with Motoki and, more importantly, Darien. "I'll be back in a few minutes."

Ami watched the violet-eyed priestess walk away from their table, willing her to walk faster. Once she was sure that Rei wasn't going to come back in the next few minutes, she turned back toward Makoto. "Makoto, I need to tell you something before Rei returns, or Luna for that matter." she declared urgently.

The brunette's eyebrows rose in surprise; her green eyes shining with uncontained curiosity as she completely turned toward her friend. "Go right ahead."

The blue eyed girl took a deep breath. "Fine, here it goes. Monday night…."

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Darien breathed a sigh of relief when he walked into the arcade. Out of his peripheral vision, he had seen Rei talking with two of her friends through the window as he walked down the sidewalk. Luckily there had been no odango-haired girl in sight.

Now, as he walked toward Motoki and the counter, he looked about the establishment, hoping that Serena _wasn't _in the arcade. _'Good, she's no where in sight.'_ he thought to himself once he reached the counter. _'It means I'll have to wait until later to question her, but at least she's away from Rei for a while.'_

With a sigh, Darien placed his umbrella against the stool he was sitting on before shrugging off his jacket. He nodded to Motoki as he placed the jacket on the counter. "Hey Motoki."

"Darien! Aren't you a sight for sore eyes!" Motoki laughed, grinning as he placed a cup of coffee in front of the black-haired man, not even having to be asked for it. "Where have you been lately? I haven't even seen you in class these past few days."

Darien stiffened at the question, before he relaxed and let a smile slide onto his face. _'I can just imagine Motoki's expression if I told him the truth.' _"Sorry about that Motoki. I've been really sick lately. I've barely been awake these past three days in fact."

"I'm sorry to hear that Dare. I had gotten really worried when you weren't in class. I know how much education means to you, you hardly ever miss school!" Motoki said with a concerned frown and shake of his head.

"Yeah, you know me. If I hadn't been so tired, I would have still found some way to get to school." Darien replied before he took a sip of his coffee. "Would you mind if I look over your notes from the past few days?"

"You don't even have to ask, Dare! I'll give them to you tomorrow morning when you come in, I don't have any of my stuff with me today. You know, me being only a part time student and all, I didn't have any classes today." Motoki said before he spotted someone behind Darien and waved. "But, don't worry, you didn't miss much in our classes."

"Hey Rei. How you've been? I haven't--hey what happened to her cheek?" the blonde-haired man questioned with a frown as he spotted the white bandage on the girl's face.

"Oh, that." Rei said with a nervous giggle, trying to pretend it was nothing serious. "I had a little accident yesterday while I was sick at home. It's nothing serious. It'll be gone in the next few days!"

Darien stiffened at the voice of the dark-haired girl before hunkering down further over his coffee. He knew he wouldn't be able to make eye contact with the girl just yet, not without snapping at her or throwing a few steel-tipped roses her way. _'Which is no less than she deserves.' _he thought darkly. _'I can't believe how she's acting. She's so carefree, like she didn't just abuse Serena a few days ago.'_

"You were sick too?" Motoki asked curiously before nodding his head toward the man silently drinking his coffee. "Darien here has been under the weather as well."

The blonde-haired arcade worker blinked in bewilderment when he saw the murderous expression on Darien's face. _'What in the world? Why does he look so angry? He wasn't like this a minute ago, not until Rei arrived. Rei…'_ he looked toward the innocent-looking school girl before looking back at Darien. _'What could she have done to cause Darien so much rage?'_

He was brought out of his thoughts when he saw Rei turn towards the man. "Were you caught out in the rain too, Darien?" Rei said lightly, smiling at Darien. Motoki winced when he saw Darien's hands clench around the coffee cup he was holding.

"Uh, no." Darien replied, trying to sound normal. He refused to meet the girl's eyes still. "I actually didn't even know it was raining until an hour or so ago."

"Wow." murmured Rei, subtly leaning closer to the blue-eyed man. "You must have been really sick. It's been raining for almost two days."

"Yeah." Darien mumbled, keeping his answers as short as he could. His fingers tightened around the coffee mug again. "Real sick."

"If I had known you were sick, I would have made some of my special herbal tea. Every time I get sick, I drink some and am as good as new in no time!" she smiled before flipping her hair over her shoulder. _'I wish he'd look at me already!' _she thought to herself as she looked toward the clock. _'Only 4:10.' _"That's what I usually do for my friends."

"Really?" Darien asked, unable to stop the bitterness from leaking out of his voice. "Is that what you did for Serena? Give her some of your special _tea?_" His knuckles were stark white around the coffee cup yet he still didn't look at the girl.

"Hmmm? What are you tal---oh!" Rei exclaimed, her eyes widening as she remembered the lie they had made up for Serena. "Uhh, no. I wasn't able to. She's still in Kyoto with her family. Her mother said that she feel ill when she was taking care of them."

"She can't be." Motoki said in disbelief. He scratched his blonde hair in confusion. "I saw her walking down the street this morning. She didn't stop in but I know it was her. She's the only blonde I know with hair that long."

"Are you sure?" the question was uttered quietly, causing Motoki to almost miss it. If it hadn't been for the hard edge to the question he was sure he would have.

"Uh, yeah." answered the arcade worker hesitantly as looked at the bowed over college student. He took a step back in surprise as he heard and saw a crack forming in Darien's mug. He swore in shock as the mug snapped under the pressure of the man's grip. He quickly ducked to avoid being hit when he saw the shards of glass spraying themselves everywhere. _'Holy crap! What is this all about? Darien's not acting like himself at all.'_

When Motoki was sure the pieces had stopped flying, he looked up to see the blood and coffee mix together as they escaped Darien's hands and ran across the counter. Nonetheless, when the blonde-man looked at Darien, the other seemed not to notice, even though he was still staring at his hands.

'_It's like he's lost in his own little world.'_ Motoki thought to himself as he peered at the man better. _'Was that a golden flash?' _he thought in disbelief, eyes widening before he looked toward Rei to see if the girl had noticed. What he saw was just as bewildering to him, Rei looked like she wasn't quite sure what to do or say.

Her mouth continued to open and close like a fish as she looked between Darien and Motoki. Finally she seemed to come to a decision and snapped her attention to Motoki solely. Her violet seemed to penetrate the blonde's soul and he fought against the urge to step as far away as he could. "Are you _positive _it was Serena, Motoki?" there was a hard, almost panicky edge to the question.

Motoki never answered, his focus on Darien completely. He blinked in shock as the man finally looked up from his shattered coffee cup. His eyes were flashing constantly from gold to navy. "D-darien?" he stuttered. _'This isn't good. Not at all.'_

"You saw her this morning?" came the deadly quiet question. Motoki knew it wasn't though, it was a statement. In any case, he couldn't stop himself from answering and explaining himself further.

"Yes, si--" he stopped himself quickly, biting off the instinctive _'Sir' _he was going to say. He glanced out of the corner of his eye at Rei, hoping she didn't catch his slip. Fortunately for him she didn't seem to, he could tell she was eagerly awaiting his reply though.

Motoki cleared his throat nervously before continuing. "I think she was on her way to school. I had been cleaning some of the window-seats and saw her walking by. I _know _it was her without a doubt." he replied. He winced as he continued to watch the blood mix with the coffee on the counter. "Uh, Darien? Are-are you alright? You're bleeding, man."

That seemed to be what was needed to snap Darien out of whatever daze he had entered. "Huh?" he asked in bewilderment before he glanced down at his hand. He was surprised to see the broken pieces of glass and his blood. When he looked back up at Motoki, his eyes were navy again. "Sorry about that, Motoki. I don't know what came over me."

"That's all right." came the weak reply. Motoki cleared his throat nervously again, scratching the back of his head with a forced laugh. "Probably a faulty cup, no big deal."

Darien absently nodded, wincing as he opened his hands and let the glass pieces fall onto the counter. He could see that none of them had become impeded into his skin, yet they cut into it deeply into some places. "Hey Motoki? Do you have some bandages or something? I should really wrap this up."

"Yeah, sure. The first aid kit is somewhere around here." the man mumbled as he began rummaging underneath the counter. He immerged a few seconds later with the white kit in tow. "Aha! Here, do you need to use the back room? You can probably clean up the wound better without all these gawking people."

When the dark-haired man raised his eyebrows in curiously, Motoki gestured toward the few people that had stopped when they saw the injured man. "They've been watching since they heard the shattering." He glared as he said this, causing the people to turn away innocently.

"Sure." Darien mumbled, absently taking the offered first aide kit before heading toward the back room. Motoki watched him go in worry. _'I need to tell the generals about this. They wanted to know of any strange occurrences, and I definitely call this one.'_

"Hey Rei---" he began as he turned around, expecting to she the girl in the same position she had been in the whole time. He was met with empty space. "Wha--? Where'd she go?"

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'_I can't believe it!' _Rei furiously thought to herself as she practically stomped her way back to the booth. _'How dare she show her face around here again! She isn't going to get away with this.'_

The raven-haired girl practically threw herself back into the booth seat once she reached her friends. She didn't notice the startled squeaks they released as she appeared, or the way that the two immediately stopped talking. "Rei!" tittered Makoto as she forced a smile toward the girl. "What happened to your tea?"

"Oh." blinked Rei as she remembered she had been planning to get a drink. "I...uh...got caught up in the…um…commotion over there. Motoki was too busy taking care of it to get my drink."

"What commotion?" Ami questioned curiously. She cast a glance behind her and toward Motoki, finding him cleaning something up on the counter. "Did someone have an accident?"

"Oh, Darien had a faulty cup. It just, well, _shattered _when he was holding it. It sprayed glass everywhere. Motoki and I were almost caught up in them." Rei informed her friends.

"Wow." murmured Lita, eyes peering toward Motoki as well. She blinked when she didn't see Darien around. "Is Darien all right? I don't see him anywhere."

"The glass cut up his hands so he went into the backroom to bandage them up. He was lucky none of the glass was imbedded. He'll probably be sore for a few days but won't need surgery or anything."

"That _is _lucky. He should still get it checked out though." Ami said, frowning in concern as she turned back toward Rei. "Just to be safe."

"He'll be fine, Ami. Now, I think I should tell you two what I was going to. It's already 4:20 and there's no sign of Minako showing up." Rei frowned angrily. _'What a coward.'_

"Sure, go right ahead." Lita said, leaning her head onto her hands to show she was paying attention.

"Where should I start?" Rei murmured in concentration. "Well, I know you guys know of Serena's betrayal. I guess I should start after that. Serena had been staying at Minako's apartment, but we hadn't had any progress. Luna and I decided she should be moved to the temple. We…"

Almost 15 minutes later, Rei finished telling her tale. She had told her two fellow senshi about how she and Luna had taken Serena out of Minako's apartment, how she and Luna had discovered a sleeping Minako, how she herself had been attacked by a new Dark Kingdom general at the temple, how much power the said man had, and how he called Serena his wife.

She left nothing out, with the exception of how injured Serena had truly been that is. _'I know they still don't want to believe that Serena is a traitor. They still hold respect and hope in her. I wouldn't be able to tell them without negative effects for me.' _the violet-eyed girl thought to herself, watching the two in front of her intently.

"Well?" she demanded when there was no response for a few minutes. She sighed in aggravation. "Do you see now that Serena is a traitor? A Dark Kingdom general _rescued _her. _And _called her his _wife_, which we know isn't true unless she _was _his wife in the Silver Millennium. It's exactly as Luna and I thought. Serena's been a traitor all along."

"I…uh…are you…she…" Makoto desperately struggled to find something to say. _'I hate to say it, but it makes a shred of sense. And I know that she's telling the truth. Ami confirmed it before Rei even got here. All those energy readings.'_

"How strong was the man exactly, Rei?" Ami asked, hesitant in finding out more information. _'This general __**must **__have been what readings my Mercury computer picked up. They had been spiking off the chart at some points that morning.'_ Ami cast a swift glance over at Makoto. The brunette looked troubled, her green eyes clouded over with worry. _'She doesn't want to believe it either. But what can we think when I have proof on my computer.'_

"Weren't you listening, Ami?" groaned Rei as she stared at the blue-eyed girl. She didn't want to repeat herself more than once.

"Humor me, please." Ami pleaded quietly. Her hand absently fiddled with the cover of her mercury computer on her lap, where she had hidden it when Rei returned.

"Fine." huffed out Rei. She licked her lips before she began, wishing she _had _asked for a tea. "He was incredibly power. More so than Jadeite and Nephrite put together, without a doubt. You know how I can get physic impressions on people? Well, this guy's power overwhelmed me without me having to even _try _to read them. I was lucky to even see straight."

"Hmmm." Makoto's reply was distracted. "Doesn't this mean that Serena was telling the truth when she said she and Tuxie had been fighting a new Dark Kingdom general last week then? When she disappeared on us?"

Rei blinked, not having thought of that. "Well, I guess she was. But I _highly _doubt she was fighting with him. She could have been planning something for all we know."

"But then, where does Tuxedo Mask fit in all this?" Ami pondered. "She said that they both had been fighting the general. He _had _been gone while we were fighting Maerina."

"It seems like he _is _working for the Dark Kingdom if you ask me. We've always seen suspicious things; like how he doesn't help any of us but Serena. It adds up." Rei piped up. "Maybe he's protecting his boss's wife or something."

"So, let me get this straight." Makoto began, ticking off her fingers. "You took Serena out of Minako's apartment -_without _her knowledge- and took her to the temple to place her in some kind of ancient cell that Luna called up. A Dark Kingdom general showed up and ruffed you up some before taking Serena with him. He was incredibly powerful and was adamant that _Serena _was his _wife_. And his eyes did this weird flashing thing as he was talking to you--"

"And he had total control over his powers." the bluenette carried on. "He was able to call them back into himself with minimal effort. He also had the signs of being a high ranking general, carrying a sword and wearing armor. Yet, he didn't care about gathering energy from what you said. He only wanted Serena. And in addition to being able to summon energy balls, you believe he was a proficient swordsman--"

"Yeah." cut it Rei. "I may not have fought him in sword combat but I have no doubt in my mind that he could slice me in two without trying. These cuts he gave me are nothing to laugh about." She rubbed her sweater-covered neck in memory. "The one on my neck will be there for a while."

"Are you sure you don't want me to look at them?" Ami asked as she studied the girl in front of her. "I could patch them up if you'd like me to."

"No, that's all right. They're fine for now." smiled Rei. "Just continue on with your summarizing. We need to make sure everything is out and nothing has been forgotten."

Makoto took that moment to speak up. "There's not much left anyways. The general made some odd comments about having to obey him and you giving him an apology, along with one to Serena. Minako still doesn't know you were the one that took Serena and Motoki claimed to have seen Serena this morning. But both Ami and I are sure she wasn't at school since we never saw her in class. Is that all?"

"Hmm." Rei tapped her fingernails against the table in thought. "I think that's about it. Oh! I just remembered, the general kept calling me this weird name. I can't even remember it though. Tella- something I think." Rei thought again, trying to remember anything about that night. "I don't really remember anything else. Everything's kinda fuzzy still. I guess hitting that wall caused more damage than I thought."She absently rubbed the back of her head, wincing when she hit a tender spot.

"So, the general mistook you for someone else?" Ami asked in confusion. _'This doesn't make sense at all. I wish I had been there for myself.'_

"Maybe. I'm not real sure." Rei shrugged carelessly. "So, what are we going to do about all this? Minako neglected her responsibilities and should be punished if you ask me. And Serena is walking around the city somewhere, there's no telling what she can do now. Especially since she's teamed up with the Dark Kingdom."

"_Ugh_. Do much information." groaned Makoto theatrically as she laid her head on the table. "Can't we have time to adjust to all this new information Rei?" She watched Ami as she said this, making gestures with her eyes toward Rei. _'Come on Ami. Back me up here, I want to discuss this with you. We need a plan of action before we do anything else.'_

It took Ami only a few seconds to understand the message and she wholeheartedly agreed. She turned toward Rei, watching the priestess's face. "Yes Rei. It would be wise to think over all this information first. We wouldn't want to make any rash decisions on any of the matters."

"Fine." Rei breathed out. "I suppose you're right. I'll go home to give you some time I guess. I should see if Luna's there to tell her Serena's been spotted in the city." Rei glanced outside to see that it was still raining before she slipped on her jacket once more. "I'll see you girls later then." she murmured as she grabbed her umbrella and stood up.

"Bye Rei." Makoto called as she watched the girl walk toward the doors.

"Be safe in the rain!" added Ami as she too watched the girl walk away. Once they were both sure Rei was well on her way down the street, they simultaneously turned toward one another.

"So, how about that rain, Ames?" Makoto said with a chuckle, trying to make light of the situation everyone had been placed in.

Ami didn't seem to catch the humor of Makoto's words though. She turned toward the window and watched the steady downfall. "It's ominous." Ami whispered quietly, startling Makoto who didn't think the blunette was going to speak. "I can feel it in my very soul."

"Uhhh.. I see." the brunette murmured, her green eyes staring at the girl beside her in worry. Suddenly she grinned. "Well, I guess the senshi of water would have that knowledge. Lucky girl. All I can do is shock people."

It took a few moments before a giggle escaped Ami, no matter her efforts to contain it. "You always have something odd to say don't you?" She smiled at the brunette thankfully all the same; she didn't want to dwell on her thoughts or her feelings right now. "So, how about we go get something to eat and some drinks from Motoki? I have a feeling we'll be here for a while."

"Yes!" cheered Makoto as she practically dragged the girl out of the booth. "I've been starving for forever! I was waiting for Pyro to finish though." she winked down at Ami. "Didn't want to be rude and all."

"Yeah, because plotting against her isn't rude _at all_." murmured the other girl as she allowed herself to be dragged. The other girl only laughed in response.

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"Are you sure Darien?" Motoki asked hesitantly as he walked with his dark-haired friend back to the front room. He leaned against the counter as he watched his friend check to see if any coffee or blood had soaked in his leather jacket as it laid on the counter. "You know you can stay in the backroom longer to recover if you want."

"No thanks, Motoki." Darien replied as he slipped on his -thankfully dry- jacket, mindful of his now bandaged hands. He nodded toward where he could still see faint traces of coffee on the counter. "I think I've caused enough commotion for the day."

"You know that wasn't your fault man." _'At least I hope it wasn't. You were incredibly angry about something.'_ "It was just a flawed mug. Could have happened to anyone." Motoki reasoned, even as his mind whirled with what he had seen just after the cut shattered. _'Why were his eyes golden? I don't recall Endymion having an ability to do that. Then again, I only meet him briefly once or twice.'_

"I'll just go Motoki. Thanks for the offer though. And for the bandages." he said, glancing down at his hands. They should be healed within the next day or two if his golden sparks worked. _'Yeah, willing to work for me but not for someone who needed them more, like Serena.' _he thought to himself bitterly. He'd probably never understand why they worked the way they did, let alone why they even existed.

"All right, man." sighed Motoki, he knew he wouldn't be able to convince the stubborn man. "Just take care of yourself and promise me that if your hands don't get better soon, that you'll go get them checked out."

"Promise." Darien replied, smiling at his friend's concern. Even if Motoki had been acting strange lately, there was no doubt in his mind that the man's concern was real. "I'll even show them to you tomorrow if you want. When I get those notes from you."

"You got yourself a deal, Dare." laughed the other man. "You'll get those notes in exchange for my satisfaction of knowing you're healing."

"That's not exactly what I meant." frowned Darien. He sighed as he picked up his umbrella, cringing a bit when his hands stung as he closed them around his handle. "See you tomorrow, Motoki."

"Bye Darien. Take care!" laughed Motoki joyfully as he walked to the other side of the counter.

The dark-haired man raised his bandaged hand in farewell. As he walked toward the exit, he passed by two of Odango's friends. He released a stiff nod in their direction as they greeted him cheerfully.

"Hey Darien! Are your hands feeling any better?" the tall, brown-haired one- _'Makoto is her name.' _he remembered- asked in concern. She gestured toward the smaller girl standing next to her. "Ami and I were worried when we heard what happened with that mug. We couldn't believe it just shattered like that."

"Yes." supplied the blunette; her blue eyes also filled with concern for the older man. "It was an unfortunate thing to happen."

"Yes, it was." agreed Darien as he stopped to study the two school girls. _'They don't seem to hold the same malice Rei does now. Maybe they weren't a part of Rei's plan. I can never be too sure though.' _"Luckily they were just flesh wounds, they'll be healed in no time."

His eyes skittered toward the pair of sliding arcade doors that was a few feet away. He saw that the rain was still pouring steadily. As he stood there looking outside, Darien was suddenly overcome with a compulsion to take a walk in the rain. He glanced back toward the girls in front of him. "Um, please excuse me." he mumbled. "I, uh, have somewhere I need to go. I apologize to leave so abruptly like this..."

"Oh, sure!" cut in Makoto apologetically. She quickly stepped out of the man's way, bringing Ami with her. "We're sorry to keep you."

"Yes, please forgive us." apologized Ami with a smile. She watched as Darien's eyes made their way to the windows this time. _'He seems really distracted all of a sudden.'_ she narrowed her eyes in thought. _'Why is it that everyone around us has started to act suspicious?'_

"It was no trouble." Darien replied as he shifted uncomfortably. He was starting to feel restless, he was positive something was calling him outside now. "Have a good night, ladies." With that, Darien nodded his head in farewell before making his way out of the arcade. Both girls watched as he momentarily stopped to open up his umbrella before he quickly began walking down the street.

"Well," began Makoto as she turned toward the counter again, intent on ordering her food. "I don't know about you, but I think that seemed a little strange. Did you see the way his eyes kept wandering outside?"

Ami didn't answer immediately, her focus now on Motoki. She watched as he warily looked around the wall he was leaning against, a phone pressed tightly against his ear. He then moved back, partially hidden from everyone. Walking closer, Ami realized he seemed to be having a heated conversation with whoever was on the other side. She watched as he caught sight of Darien's rapidly retreating form through the windows, staring intently at his back.

As she and Makoto walked closer, she caught the end of his quiet conversation. "Yes… _Yes_, I'm sure! I seen it with my own eyes….I apologize, I am simply worried…..About what?" Ami watched with avid interest as emotions continued to fly across Motoki's face, one not lasting for more than a few seconds. "Understood, sir….Tomorrow possibly?…All right then, 2 o'clock, suite 45...Good evening too, sirs."

Her bright blue eyes were fastened onto Motoki as he practically slammed the phone back into its cradle that hung from the wall. He then released an aggravated groan, rubbing his hands through his hair in frustration. She could practically see the stress and worry that was emitting from the man.

"Yes. Very strange indeed." she muttered to herself, thoughts running a mile a minute through her mind. _'Just what is going on? And why do I feel like everything is connected?'_

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12-1-07 Posted 12-1-07 11 o'clock-ish

That's because it is connected, mwahahaha! Everything sure is falling apart, isn't t? No one trusts anyone else. Rei's starting to get aggravated with Luna and vise versa. Makoto and Ami are lost on what to do and are trying to hold onto their belief in each other desperately. Who knows where Artemis, Motoki, and the generals stand! Minako is up to something fishy and Darien's emotions are going out of wack, he's caring for Serena! -Le Gasp!-

And did you catch that little tidbit about _'the police searching for a mysterious attack of a local Monday?'_ Endy is a wanted man! Is that drama or what? Mwahaha! I love drama, can you tell?

All right everyone, I want to inform you all that it is my intention to _**really **_**speed things up **in this story. It's already 13 chapters and I'm positive none of you are sure where I'm going with this thing (I have doubts myself sometimes).

Generals need to be met, Serena and Darien need to confront each other, Darien needs to realize who the other senshi are, Maerina needs to be defeated, we need to learn what the hell is going on with Minako and Artemis, there is just a ton of things going on! And they need to _**go on!**_

So please be aware because you'll have to be able to stay on your toes sometimes (me too) and realize what's going on. Otherwise, I predict it's going to be confusing. I'm worried myself actually. Some of the things coming up…geeze.

All right that's all I have to say, please review and tell me what you think. (Like always) Oh! And if you have any questions about what has already happened, ask away! I know it was a long time since I updated the time before last and many of you forgot what was going on and don't want to have to reread through everything, so ask me and I'll answer.

That's all everyone, thanks for keeping with me and the story. And _**Happy Holidays **_in case I don't get out the next chapter within the next few weeks! )


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

Hello there readers! Another chapter for everyone! My first 2008 chapter, go me! A lot of action in this chap; as said I am hoping to speed up things a bit. Of course, as I am speeding things up, many secrets will be revealed. One _**BIG, HUGE, GIGANTIC **_secret will be revealed at the end of the next chapter. AND did I mean how HUGE it is!? Lol, sorry I'm just excited for it. Yay!! Darien/Serena Fluff up ahead; just to let everyone know!

Oh, and I answered a few of your guys' questions at the end so be sure to read those! Thank you! Enjoy the chapter! And please remember to REVIEW!!! I sincerely appreciate all of you reviews (And readers!!). I does give me the inspiration to write because I can see people enjoy the story. And that makes me happy!

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Jadeite's hand tightened around the phone as he replaced it in its receiver. With a sigh he turned toward his companion on the sofa, who was currently fingering his newly dyed black hair with distaste. "Well, what do you make of all this, Zoi?"

There was a long pause as the man continued to observe the black hair. Finally he sighed himself and dropped his hair before turning piercing green eyes to his friend. "I'm not sure actually. Nothing is making any sense anymore. Even though he won't admit it, I know that even the Commander is perplexed by everything. I can just imagine what his reaction is going to be to this."

"Can you think of anything that would have made Endymion so mad his eyes turned golden?" questioned Jadeite as he walked back into the bathroom to finish dying his own hair. He rolled his eyes at the name of the package, _Sunset Kiss, _before beginning the daunting task. _'The things we do for our mission.'_

"I can't think of anything at the moment." Zoisite replied as he saw a novel on the coffee table in front of him and grabbed it. He began to flip through the pages as he continued to speakm. "At least this adds to the prospect of this _Darien _being Endymion. I mean, I can't think of anyone else's eyes being able to turn golden. Even when overcome with rage, not many people have that ability."

"Endymion was always so passionate but hardly anything made him mad enough for his eyes to change color." supplied Jadeite from inside the bathroom. Suddenly he laughed loudly. "Well, unless it had to do with Serenity that is. When he was mad then, you could never stop him."

Zoisite looked up from the book and stared at the form of his friend he could see in silence. Finally he cleared his throat and asked the question that had been plaguing him for some time. "You… you don't think Serenity is here, do you?"

Jadeite poked his head out of the bathroom, wet from his preparations. "It's a possibility. But, I mean, wouldn't the Commander tell us if she was also in the city? That information could compromise everything. We can't just take Endymion if she's around; neither would allow it."

"He _should _have told us if she was in the city." agreed Zoisite as he placed his novel on the coffee table and got up. He paused to stretch before looking for his brown leather jacket. _'There is always the chance he didn't for whatever reason though.'_

He finally spotted his leather jacket and slipped it on with a thoughtful look on his face. "Hey, Jed!" he called as he glanced outside; it was still raining pretty heavily. He heard a muffled _"What--?" _from the bathroom as he walked toward the front door. "I'm going out for a bit. I want to talk to Motoki some more."

"Can't you do that over the phone? I mean, it's already 5:15!" came Jadeite protest. "Plus, it's still pouring cats and dogs out there!"

"I want to gauge his reactions to my questions." came the simple reply as the newly dyed black-haired man stopped to grab one of the umbrellas beside the door. "I'll be back in a bit!"

The door slammed behind him in answer, cutting off all Jadeite's protests.

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Darien walked through the park slowly, not minding the people running past him in their escape from the rain. He looked around him, wondering what had been calling him outside. After he had left the arcade, he had immediately gone to the park and now that he was there, he hadn't been able to spot anything that could have drawn him here.

'_I had thought that it might have been a youma attack. But no one around here is screaming in fear or anything else of the nature. They're just trying to stay dry.'_

As the dark-haired man continued to walk through the arcade in thought, he spotted something off in the distance. There, sitting on one of the many park benches protected under an oak tree, sat a small figure. Even being protected under the oak's leaves, it was obvious that the figure was drenched with rain water.

Concerned, Darien walked toward the individual. _'I wonder what's wrong. Are they sick? Injured maybe?' _As the dark-haired man moved closer, only a few feet away now, he was surprised to see two long blonde streamers resting against the bench. They had blended in perfectly with the yellow raincoat the figure was wearing.

There was only one person he could think of with hair that long, and even though it was hidden under a hood, he was sure that it was placed in a particular style that only that girl had. "Odango." he whispered in surprise. He watched as the said girl snapped her head up in shock, staring at him with puffy and watery blue eyes. Immediately afterwards, Darien watched as she bent her head down again, stealthily dashing the back of her hand across her eyes.

The damage had been done already though; Darien knew she had been crying and for a long time it seemed. Wisely he decided not to mention it, for the moment at least. He already knew the cause of her tears, it was easy to guess with the current events. There was no point in upsetting her further by asking her why she was crying.

The dark-haired man looked around him in thought, taking in the fact that there seemed to be not many people left in the park. Only a few stragglers left, some walking and others running in a frenzy still. _'I guess a lot of people want to get out of the rain before it gets completely dark. Which isn't long from now.'_

He absently tightened his hand around the umbrella, wincing instantly afterwards when pain stung the hand. _'Got to remember not to do that again.' _he thought to himself as he switched the umbrella to his other bandaged hand.

"You know," he began suddenly, startling both himself and the girl sitting on the bench into sharing a startled glance. Nonetheless Darien cleared his throat, continuing even as he watched Serena bow her face down again. "you are going to get sick if you stay out here any longer."

The girl said nothing, keeping her head bent in her yellow hood. Darien sighed before deciding he needed to change tactics if he wanted to help Serena. "Do you mind if I sit with you?"

Again the girl didn't reply, making Darien frown in concentration. He looked for a fairly dry spot on the bench beside the blonde and hesitantly sat down when he found one. He inwardly smiled when the girl didn't complain about his presence. Shifting into a more comfortable position, and subtly moving his umbrella to cover Serena as well, the blue-eyed man braced himself for a long wait.

It took five minutes, neither saying a word except for an occasional sniffle and hiccup from the blonde girl, before Serena finally said something. "What happened to your getting sick advise?" she mumbled, head still bowed over. "You're going to get sick too if you stay out here."

"It doesn't matter." Darien replied, looking at the girl out of the corner of his eyes. "I already told everyone I've been sick these past few days. I could always say I got a relapse of my cold. Besides, you shouldn't stay out here by yourself."

Serena finally looked up, her eyes still red and puffy. "Why do you care?" she asked, glaring slightly through her blue eyes. "All you do is tease and argue with me. You don't care about me. Not at all."

"I care about you." Darien stated, somewhat defensively. He winced when he remembered all the things he had said and done to Serena since he had known her. _'I guess she would think I didn't care about her at all with the things I do. But still…' _"I have my moments of caring, you know."

"Is that what all that back at your apartment was? A _moment _of caring?" Serena seemed riled up now, her voice rising with each word. Darien sat back and let her rant; he knew she needed this more than anything at the moment. "What are you going to do now, huh!? Are you going to continue to _tease _me? Make fun of my hair and grades again? Or are you going to _ignore _me for a change? Or maybe you'll betray me like all my friends did? Kick me when I'm down? Hate me for something I never did? _What Darien_? What are you going to do!?"

She broke down crying then, surprising Darien who thought she was going to continue to rant. He was even more startled when the girl launched herself into his arms, knocking the umbrella out of his hands and onto the ground. "Od-odango?" he stuttered in shock, his arms absently wrapping around the girl.

He looked down at Serena and took in her position. Her arms were wrapped tightly around his waist as her hands clenched and unclenched the fabric, all the while her face was pressed into the chest of his leather jacket tightly. He sighed when he heard her muffled sobs increase in volume. "It's alright Serena." he mumbled, arms tightening around the girl comfortingly. "Just let everything out. You can't keep it inside."

Darien stayed in that position for a few minutes until he felt the raindrops beginning to fall harder. Glancing up to the sky, he saw that the clouds had become blacker and more ferocious since the time he had left home. Also the sun had begun setting some time ago, making it even darker still. Soon he and Serena would have to find some shelter unless they wanted to become waterlogged and blinded in darkness, more so than they already were.

Darien sighed again before turning his attention back to the girl wrapped around his waist. He finally noticed that her yellow raincoat hood had flown off her head sometime during her rant, allowing the rain to drench her even more. He set it right on her head, frowning when he heard Serena's sob increase in volume once more.

The dark-haired man hesitantly began running his hands over the girls back, hoping to comfort her someway since he felt so useless. _'I hope I'm doing this right. I don't want her more upset than she already is.' _he thought, wincing with the idea of Serena crying harder. _'That wouldn't be good.' _"Shh. It's going to be alright Serena. I promise you. Everything will be right. Shh..."

He leaned back against the bench, allowing the girl to continue to cry into his chest. He closed his eyes in thought, allowing the rain to splatter onto his face without a care. _'This kind of feels nice.'_ he thought absently, his fingers still rubbing the girl's back comfortingly. _'Of course, I'd prefer it if Serena wasn't crying.'_

Both Darien and Serena stayed in that position long after Serena had calmed down and stopped crying. Neither took notice of the fact however, content to stay like that for awhile longer. After almost ten more minutes, Serena pulled away, blushing brightly. "So-sorry Darien. I, well-- I'm sorry for crying on you like that." she stuttered, moving as far away as she could without falling over the edge of the bench. Unfortunately for her, it was less than a foot away from the dark-haired man.

Darien had opened his eyes when he felt Serena pull away, watching her stumbled attempts at apologizing. He smiled slightly at seeing her blush and cleared his throat, drawing the blonde's attention back toward him. "It's okay Serena. Do you feel better now?"

"Uhh-- yeah, I am. Thank you." she stuttered again, blushing brighter with each word. "And I'm sorry for what I said earlier. You know, all that ranting. None of those things are your problems, they're all mine. And I shouldn't of accused you of all those things."

"It's all right Serena. I haven't been very nice to you." Darien paused shaking his head at Serena's attempts of protest. "No, it's true. I just don't know how to act with people I guess. I'm surprised Motoki has put up with me as long as he's had. But that's not an excuse, and I'm sorry for the way I act toward you. I don't mean anything I say."

"I understand. To be honest, I never really took the things you said to heart. At least, not all the time. And I didn't mean a lot of the things I said either." Serena mumbled, hiding her engine-red face; the color from both her previous crying and her current embarrassment at Darien's words. "It was fun to argue with you. It actually made my day better some times."

"Was?" Darien questioned, still shocked at Serena's confessions. _'Who knew Serena actually liked our fighting like I did. I guess we both knew in our own way it was just our way of doing things.'_ His own dark blue eyes clashed with Serena's light blue. "Who said we were going to stop arguing?"

"You can't expect things to stay the same Darien. Things have changed, especially between us." Serena's answer was solemn and so was her expression as she stared at Darien. "You actually _comforted _me Darien, while I _cried _into your chest. And when have we ever had a conversation like this? One without insults or anything?"

"Practically never. At least, never on our own freewill." agreed Darien. He paused then, debating on whether or not to push the issue he wanted to. "Do you want to talk about it? About what happened?"

Serena ignored the question, studying the dark clouds overhead thoughtfully. "You know what I love about the rain?" she didn't wait for Darien's answer. "I love how it freshens everything afterwards. Everyone always says that the rain is so depressing. They never think of how liberating, how _freeing _it is."

"Serena---" began Darien, but stopped when he saw the pensive expression on her face; noting that she had never had such a mature expression on her face_. 'She's right. Everything _has _changed. I wonder if she knows how much she's changing right now though. It's only been a few days but she's already more mature than I've ever seen her.'_

"Something happened at your apartment Darien. I just don't understand what. You saw how hurt I was." the blonde glanced at Darien out of the corner of her eye, making sure he was still paying attention. "But, I'm almost completely healed now. Only a few burns and cuts left. Plus the slashes I'm guessing you stitched up, those are still healing. Everything else is _gone_, like I was never hurt."

Darien looked at the girl in surprise, finally taking notice of the lack of bruises on her face. He watched her for a few minutes, noticing that she didn't seem wince at the slightest movement as he remembered her doing in her sleep. "How--?" he murmured in shock, his blue eyes thoughtful. "How did you heal like that? It's impossible." _'Only my golden sparks heal like that and they wouldn't work for Odango when I tried.'_

"I don't know." Serena answered, staring at Darien's umbrella that was still on the ground. "But I do know that whatever happened to heal me, it made me feel liberated. Like the rain." she smiled suddenly, standing up from the bench and going to retrieve the black umbrella.

She turned back to Darien, giggling at his confused expression as she offered the umbrella back. "It's strange. I still feel the same, yet I know that I'm freer than I have ever been. I want to thank you for that Darien. I never realized how trapped I felt before. I probably never would have."

Darien stared in confusion at Serena a little longer, trying to comprehend everything she had said. He grabbed the umbrella hesitantly, blinking in confusion. "Why-- why thank me?" he finally asked as he stood up as well.

"I just have this feeling. Like it was you that healed me." she laughed suddenly, her blue eyes sparkling with amusement. "If you'd have told me I would be thanking you this much last year and having this conversation, I would have laughed myself to death."

Darien's lips twitched in amusement as he stared down at the girl. _'There's the blonde ditz I know.'_ "Well, Odango. Where do we stand now? Still think we'll stop arguing?"

She stared at the clouds thoughtfully again for a few moments before she suddenly grinned and turned back toward him. "Nah, I don't think we'll stop arguing. You're too much of a jerk-face for that."

"And you're too much of a ditz." he agreed, smiling as well. "It's good to know your back to being yourself. I was worried about this new mature, pensive Odango. It was so unlike you I thought you'd been possessed or something."

Darien watched as Serena's face turned red again; no doubt in anger this time. "How many times do I have to tell you!? My name is _Ser-en-a! _Not Odango! Get that through your thick head already, you idiot!"

"Aww…don't kid yourself, _Odango_. You know you love your nickname." he stared down at her, amused at the fire behind her eyes. He stepped closer to her, letting a lazy smile cross his face. "It's special. Shows our closeness and all that."

He watched in amusement as Serena's eyes got wider, before they narrowed at seeing the playful glint in his eyes. She stepped back and pointed an accusing finger at him. "WHAT!? Since when have we been _close!?_"

The dark-haired man frowned down at her. "Aww... I'm hurt. I thought with all that comforting I did while you cried, we'd established how close we were. Like a newfound friendship. I mean, there was all that stuff at my apartment; me taking care of you day and night. " his eyes sparked with mischief as he remembered something Serena had said. "_And_…you did so _nicely _point out how perverted I am, undressing you and all. We must be _pretty _close if you let me do that." _'Never mind the fact that I don't even remember undressing you.'_

Serena stuttered, staring at Darien in shock and horrified embarrassment as red crept up her neck and face. He grinned before straightening the befuddled girl's hood and opening his umbrella. "Well Serena. I'm glad we've had this conversation. It was very enlightening." he turned, whistling as he began to walk away toward the fading sunset.

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Zoisite walked toward the Crown Arcade with a determined step, not letting the amount of rain deter him. Nonetheless he breathed a sigh of relief once he reached the Arcade's awning, folding his umbrella easily. He may not have any grudge against Terra's rain but he didn't like the reminder it brought to him. A reminder that he was failing in his mission and that the earth was still mourning her son.

With a frown at the depressing direction his thoughts were heading in, Zoisite walked toward the counter looking for Motoki. He easily spotted the man in his mandatory white apron, talking to a raven-haired girl wearing a red jacket. _'He doesn't seem to be concerned at our situation at all.'_ he thought with a narrowing of green eyes.

He walked closer, intent on reprimanding the blonde for not following up on this Darien, when he caught their conversation and stopped. "No, I'm sorry Rei. No one has turned in any red leather gloves." The arcade worker shook his head at he sad this, staring at the girl in front of him.

'_Oh.' _Zoisite thought sheepishly and embarrassed for being so quick to think Motoki incompetent. _'He is simply helping one of his customers here.' _He continued to stand there, in the mist of the arcade, and listen in on their conversation; not willing to alert either of them of his presence yet.

Studying the raven-haired girl closer, he had the vague feeling of déjà vu. _'I know I have never met her before though. Yet, she seems familiar…'_ He continued to study the girl, even when she leaned against the counter sadly.

"Are you positive?" she questioned, bringing Zoisite's attention back to Motoki. Zoisite's brows furrowed when he saw the subtle annoyed expression on Motoki's face toward the girl. _'I wonder what she has done to him to cause this annoyance.' _

"Those were my favorite pair." the girl added, as she stared at the arcade worker intently, trying to see the truth of his words.

"Yes, I'm sure." Motoki covered up his mild annoyance at Rei and her constant questioning for her gloves with an easy smile. It was hard though, she'd already tore through the arcade and the booths, disturbing customers in the process, before she'd begun questioning him a few moments ago. "I'll be sure to tell you is someone finds them though. You can count on me."

"Thanks Motoki." smiled the girl as she stopped leaning against the counter. She turned, allowing Zoisite to glimpse a flash of violet eyes, before she turned back. "Oh! I forgot to ask you. How were Darien's hands doing? I left before he finished bandaging them."

Zoisite's brows furrowed at the glance of violet he had seen. _'Oh, odd. That is not an usual eye color. The only person I can think of with that shade of eyes is Bellona. But, that's ridiculous…'_

With a shake of his head, the newly-dyed black haired man decided to allow his presence to be known. Walking toward the counter, he sat on the counter closet to him; right next to the one the girl was leaning against. He nodded toward Motoki as the man looked at him in confusion, not understanding who he was. Zoisite watched in amusement as Motoki's eyes flicked back and forth from his hair to his face for several moments before understanding finally dawned in his eyes. He then cleared his throat nervously and nodded back.

"Hey, Motoki?" the question snapped both Zoisite's and Motoki's attention back to the girl. Zoisite looked toward the rest of the arcade, not wanting to seem to invade in on their conversation. Of course, that didn't mean he wasn't listening. After all, anything about this _Darien _would be helpful.

"Oh, sorry Rei." laughed the blonde nervously, his hand scratching the back of his head. "But yeah, Darien's hands are all right. He insisted that they were just flesh wounds and would be healed in no time."

Rei's eyebrows drew together in worry. "But… the whole mug _shattered_. It had to have been more than flesh wounds. I mean, not even any burns from the coffee?"

Motoki's eyes flickered back toward the general, taking in the fact that he was listening intently even though he wasn't facing him. _'No doubt the name Darien attracted his attention.'_

"Nope, not even any burns. And he was right, there didn't seem to be any cuts that would need stitching or anything. Flesh wounds, that's all. But we have a deal. Tomorrow he'll come in to get his notes that he missed and I get to check his hand. If I think they need to be looked at for any reason, he'll have to go to the hospital before he gets the notes."

"Are you sure he'll do that?" Rei questioned, raising in eyebrow in doubt. '_I know Darien loves knowledge, but that seems extreme. Going to the hospital just to make sure he gets some notes?_'

Motoki laughed. "I'm positive. Darien loves learning, you know that. He'll come in tomorrow and I'll look at his hands, no doubt about it."

Zoisite's ears silently perked up as Motoki said this. _'This Darien loves knowledge, just as Endymion did. That's even more evidence to point that he is indeed Endymion. There will only be one way to find out though. Tomorrow, Jed and I will come to see Darien face to face.'_

"All right then. I'm just glad he's going to be okay." smiled Rei. _'Maybe I'll show up tomorrow to see him. Just to make sure he's okay too. I mean, I did leave before I could make sure he was okay with my own eyes.'_

Zoisite cleared his throat and faced the arcade worker, deciding that he would have intervene in their conversation after all. _'But I have to be subtle about our situation around the girl. So I should ask…'_ "Is this the Darien that you wanted me to meet, Motoki?"

"Huh?" The arcade worker was dumbfounded. _'Of course the general knows who Darien is. What is he getting at?'_ He watched at the man's green eyes drifted toward Rei's direction and back to him. "Oh! Yes, that's right. I'm sorry about that. Momentarily lapse of memory." he laughed nervously again, thinking of how ridiculous he no doubt sounded.

"That is quite alright." Zoisite said with a pleasant smile. "Should I finally meet him tomorrow?"

"Yeah, that'd be great." Motoki agreed. Inside, however his mind was in turmoil. _'What will happen to Darien when the generals meet him? I'm not even allowed to know what they want with him, so how can I be sure he's going to be safe?'_ "He'll probably be here in the morning on the way to class. Around 7:30 or so would be the best time to arrive."

"That'll be fine. I'm going to bring Jamison with me as well. He's anxious to meet Darien too." Zoisite grimaced slightly, thinking of hard it was going to be to get Jed to behave around Darien if he did turn out to be Endymion. "And make sure you don't forget about our….study session tomorrow. At two."

"Don't worry I won't." Motoki replied, with his own grimace. _'They want to know _everything _about Darien. At least, everything I know about him. And then every detail about the golden eyes incident too. That's going to be a tough meeting.'_

A not-so-subtle cough brought his attention back toward Rei, who had been watching their conversation curiously. "Umm… Motoki?"

"Oh! Forgive me." Motoki said sheepishly. He turned toward the girl and offered a smile. "Rei, this is my friend Zander Wynne. He's an exchange student from England this year."

He watched as the girl sized up the man before looking at the general, who had yet to even turn in her direction. Clearing his throat, he said, "Zander, this is Rei. She's the Shinto priestess at the Cherry Hill Temple. Her and her grandfather manage it."

"It's nice to meet you, Zander." Rei greeted the silent man with a friendly smile on her face. Inwardly she frowned when the man didn't turn toward her after a few moments. _'He seemed nice enough at first. Now he's just being rude.'_

The said general in disguise finally turned toward Rei, still inwardly thinking of the meeting with the infamous Darien tomorrow. "The pleasure is all…" he trailed off as he got his first full look at the priestess. He was nothing short of stunned as he recognized how it was.

Long raven hair, with just a tint of violet. Matching, startling violet eyes that he knew could look into your soul if promoted. A pale complexion, innocent smile plastered on her face. An inner fire that burned with the deep connection to the element. There was no mistaking the woman in front of him.

"B-bell…oh Terra." he whispered, almost to himself. "This…this…no. _Impossible_."

Motoki looked at the man in worry. There weren't many things that could unsettle the well-trained general like this. And to top it off, a simple school girl was the one to unsettle him. Albeit the school girl being a sailor senshi, but still. _'I would have thought that Darien would have been the one to cause this. I mean, he's the one they've been looking for so long.'_

"Excuse me?" promoted Rei in confusion when the man continued to stare at her in shock and slight worry. "Have we met before?"

"N-no…" finally stuttered out Zoisite, shaking his head to rid himself of his thoughts. "Sorry, I thought you were someone else for a minute." he laughed easily, pretending that he wasn't in inner turmoil. _'Oh Terra. Something's definitely gone wrong. I mean, Bellona she's… she's.. Terra..'_

Rei smiled back, happy that the man wasn't as rude as she had previously thought. "It's alright. I get that sometimes."

"I'm sure you would." he said under his breath, concerned with the presence of the girl in front of him. He turned toward the arcade worker, wondering if he remembered the Martian woman from the Silver Millennium. _'I'm know his sister introduced them before but I don't know if he remembers that meeting or any of the others. Only one way to find out for sure I guess.'_

"Do you remember Jamison's fiancée, Motoki?" All the black-haired man received was a blank look in response, causing his brow to crease in thought. "You know, his _firebird_. His _Belle_."

At the mention of firebird and Belle, Motoki was instantly assaulted with images upon images. All from when he was once Cadeyrn. It was 10,000 years of memories about his encounter with the Senshi of Fire and Spirit.

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"_Brother, I would like you to meet one of my sisters-in-arms. This is Bellona. She was the Aries Priestess on Mars before coming to Lunaria."_

_She was wearing her previous station's priestess robes at the time. She had a calm, demure look to her but her aura showed how spirited she was. How strong her control and connection to fire was. Her violet eyes cast a slight redden glow as she looked at the man for the first time. _

'_**Your future is long**__.' her voice echoed in his mind as she continued to stare at him. His own startled green eyes clashed with her glowing red-violet ones. '__**Trust your heart, not what you see before you. Upcoming trials will test you, Prince of Sol**__. '_

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_The blonde man chucked as he watched the fight before him. When had first met Bellona, he knew how spirited she truly was. Someone who was that connected to fire had to have a personally just as explosive and spirited to match. Until now though, he could honestly say that he had seen very little of her true personality. _

_He flinched when he saw the harsh slap the Martian woman delivered to the smiling general. The Terran man didn't let the act of violence get to him however, laughing and biding the woman farewell joyously. __**'Lord Jadeite **_**must **_**be struck with love if he would continue to endure this.'**_

_It had been only five days since the general arrived with the rest of the Terran delegation but the Terran man still managed to get under the priestess's skin in that time. He smiled knowingly when he spotted the small blush dusting Bellona's cheeks as she walked toward him._

"_That---that… chauvinistic, despicable man! He is--ugh!" she growled as she sat beside him. The blush was still evident on her face despite her words however. The Sol Prince wisely chose not to mention it. "How can I last the two days left until they return to Terra?" _

"_Be fortunate the Queen did not invite them as long as the other delegations." he wisely pointed out as he watched Jadeite in the distance. The short-haired blonde still looked to have that goofy smile etched on his face even when as he picked up a broad sword. _

_He watched from the corner of his eye as Bellona sighed, knowing what he said was true. Some of the other delegations were planning to stay for a whole month. A simple seven days was nothing compared to that. The woman turned to stare out at the general as well, absently admiring his movements as he practiced his sword technique. _

_He looked at her warily when she suddenly chuckled as a grin settled on her face. '__**She must have realized that Lord Jadeite's attention was completely devoted to the task at hand. Even that ridiculous grin he has been sporting since he first met Bellona has been replaced with a look of total concentration**__.' _

_The priestess suddenly stood up and dusted off her clothing, ignoring his own questioning glances. She peered around then, making sure no one but she, the Sol Prince, and Jadeite were around the immediate vicinity. He watched as she closed her eyes in thought before snapping her fingers loudly. Her violet eyes snapped open as both their focuses were drawn to Jadeite when a startled curse and clatter of sword rang out._

"_I will see you tonight in the dinning hall, Cadeyrn." Bellona practically chipped as she curtseyed to the him stately. "I believe I will be with Serenity if you need me before then."_

_He never answered, overcome with a laughing fit. He managed to stop enough to wheeze out a farewell, watching the girl walk away in amusement. He turned his attention back to the practicing field, where Lord Jadeite was trying in vain to stop the fire that had been set to his breeches. _

_He couldn't stop his chuckles as he raced to help the man put a stop to the fire that was eagerly burning holes in his garments. '__**She **_**must **_**be in love as well. Poor Lord Jadeite.**__'_

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_He looked out at the battlefield. Fallen warriors were everywhere, staining the ground red and littering it with armor and weaponry. This wasn't what bothered him however. It was the opposing woman on the opposite side of the battlefield. His sister stood impassively, a cold expression on her face as she stared back at him._

_She stood beside him then, now instead of her robes she donned the uniform of her new station. As the Sailor Mars warrior. She said nothing, just stared at out the woman before them as well. He didn't need to hear the words to know her message though. The same one she had given him years before. '__**Trust your heart, not what you see before you**__.'_

_As he watched the light blazing from his sister's attacks and how she did not give any concern to who was in front of the attacks though, he wasn't so sure he could anymore. How could he still believe his sister was still an ally? Still fighting for their cause? _

'_**What has become of you Ainé?**__'_

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_He leaned against the pillar ruins heavily, blood dripping from every one of his wounds. He and his platoon had come to Lunaria to offer assistance in the battle, but it did no good. Youmas crept out from the shadows while the betrayers fought against all that stood before them. None could stand against them, falling in their fights. They were brilliant warriors and it showed in every blow they delivered._

_He himself had fought against Kunzite. Once Endymion's personal guard. Once his sister's lover. And once someone he had considered a brother in his own way. Now he only saw a betrayer. A betrayer who mercilessly stabbed a toxicant filled crystal though his stomach, leaving him to die by either poisoning or blood loss. Which ever came first he guessed._

'_**Of course there is always the option of a youma killing me.**__' He winced when a piercing pain stabbed through his body, unable to stop himself from dropping to the ground in defeat. His green eyes were drawn to the youma that was coming closer, a strange, vile smelling slime dripping from it. _

'_**Acid**__' , he thought bitterly, glancing down at where his blood-soaked and ripped uniform was slowly dissolving before his eyes. He was surprised when the youma suddenly was engulfed in flames before collapsing into nothing more than ash. A final roar dieing from its lips._

"_Bellona." he whispered thankfully. He was suddenly overcome with a cough fit then. Glancing down at his hand, he saw his life's blood staining his fingers. The poison easily seen in it, a midnight black color contrasting with the bright red._

_He looked back up at the woman, seeing the sad truth in his eyes. Her violet eyes more haunted and sadder than he had ever seen them before. He closed his eyes in defeat, knowing he was going to die in any minute. _

"_Yes, you will die." she answered, even though it was unnecessary. "It will not be for naught however."_

"_Will they win?" he questioned, unable to stop his curiosity at even his deathbed. _

_She chuckled slightly, as if she knew what he was thinking. He wouldn't be surprised if she could. "No, they will not." she cut in before he could express his joy. "It will cost though."_

"_It always does." he thought ruefully, glancing at the fight surrounding them. "How much will it cost this time though?"_

_She sighed sadly. He looked up when he felt the woman move next to his head. He began to breathe deeply when he saw her beginning a prayer. "It will cost everything, Cadeyrn. Everything."_

_He was silent, knowing that there was really nothing left to say. He heard her finish the prayer, blessing his passing and giving him prosperity in his new life. The warrior did not stand yet though, she continued to stay at his side. The dieing prince knew that she would stay until his death, and he was comforted by this. Bellona was like a sister to him and he knew that since he could not have his own sister with him, Bellona was as equally comforting. _

"_If it helps your passing," she began softly. "know that I have Seen the truth. Endymion's guards have not betrayed us. They are still on Terra as we speak, only Endymion has set foot upon Lunaria during this battle."_

"_What are those vile creatures then?" he questioned, unable to hide his relief in his voice. He would be able to forgive Kunzite then, as there was nothing to forgive in the first place. He would die with relief now, knowing the man he considered a brother still thought the same of him._

"_I cannot say." she answered. "But also know this, your sister has not betrayed to the other side either."_

_He couldn't help his snort at that thought, wincing as the action burned through his chest. "I cannot believe that. I have seen what she has done with my own eyes. She has betrayed own beliefs, our persons."_

"_It is not true; she has not betrayed us. It is something I have Seen. Even before I took my current post, I Saw when she became as she is now. Inside she is in horror and despair at her own actions."_

"_Is she not in control of herself then?" he asked anxiously, hope blossoming in his chest. If his sister was being controlled by someone, there could be a chance to save her._

"_She is. There is no other choice to her actions though. She is deeply sorrowed with what she is doing and her actions will continue to haunt her until she is allowed to forget. And to be forgiven."_

"_Why is she like this?" he asked sorrowfully. Pain stabbed through him again, seizing the breath momentarily from him. His shallow breathing echoed in his ears like thunder. _

"_To protect." the priestess whispered. Her cool hands touched his forehead comfortingly. "She will never ask your forgiveness. But, I as your friend, ask that you do forgive her."_

_He breathed deeply, feeling the cold rushing in on him. "Tell her…" he wheezed, the pain in his body exploding. "Tell her… that I have forgiven her and that-- that I still love her. She will always be my sister…Always." his face contorted in pain, and he felt water hit his face. _

_Looking up, he saw the senshi's violet eyes brimming with tears, some splashing his face. He smiled sadly. "I always envied you, you know." he whispered. "You were able to see my sister before this happened. To see her last… her last days of happiness."_

"_Yes, if only that was all I could See." she whispered in despair before smiling gently down at him. "But know that she is thinking of you, Kunzite, and the rest of us still. She is doing as she thinks right. To protect remember."_

"_Be in peace Bellona, my pyro-sister. We will all meet again. I can feel it." He breathed his last breath then but with a peaceful smile on his face. He knew the truth now, knowing that all would be right one day._

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Completed: 1/10/08 Posted: 1/13/08 9-o'clock-ish.

Soo… that was dramatic at the end, huh? Poor Cadeyrn for dieing like that and poor Motoki for having to relive his death! I gotta say that I absolutely loved those Silver Millennium memories though, I would _**love **_to make a story based back then.

Oh My God! I _**loved**_ the last scene between Sere and Darien. It was just so perfect! Yes!! Actually, I enjoyed writing that whole scene but the last bit was the best. AND, the memory of Bellona, Jadiete, and Cadeyrn. I loved Bellona's actions at the end. Setting Jed's pants on fire, priceless!! LOL! I imagined that so well in my head. And it was something I could see Bellona doing. I wish that'd of happened in the series.

So what'd everyone think of the Darien/Serena action overall? I hope everyone got what I was trying to say with Serena and being free like the rain. _**Something**_ did happen at Darien apartment when Serena was injured. Yet, only Serena feels different because she notices something…off with her. What exactly happened should be revealed in the chapter after next. Which I'm hoping will be started within the next few days.

All right. So, the generals have set up a plan to meet Darien tomorrow, but will they make it? And yes, they have now dyed their hair because they know that the Dark Kingdom generals have their faces! So, that's why Rei didn't noticed Zoisite was Zoicite(DK) just to make sure everyone is clear.

So in answer to a few questions from all you wonderful reviewers:

1.) Are the DK generals and the HQ generals one and the same?

----To put it simply Jadeite and Zoisite (Since they are the only one revealed so far) are not. Nephrite and Kunzite? You'll just have to wait and see honestly. Not even I'm sure yet. Well, for one at least. Mwahahah!

2.) Are the HQ generals Endymion's guards? As in siding with him, protecting him?

----Yes. Jed and Zoi are Endymion's faithful guards. And very loyal considering it's been 10,000 years. Really unwavering, huh?

3.) Is Bellona good or evil? And did she betray Serenity and them in the SM?

----No, she didn't betray anyone in the SM. She is good and considers the senshi her sisters practically. Endymion did say he would spare her because Sere saw her as a sister and it was vise versa! Remember this because it's incredibly important.

4.) Are Endymion and Darien/ Serenity and Serena going to merge into each other soon?

------No, they will not merge. Think of the title, that should help.

5.) What does everyone remember about the SM?  
------Minako, Zoi, and Jed remember **almost everything **from _**their **_point of view. So, Jed and Zoi think Minako was a betrayer and only Minako (plus Bellona as seen above) know why she acted like she did.

Luna _thinks _she remembers some things. But as shown in a few chapters back, her memories aren't quite right.

TM and the Senshi (minus Minako) don't remember anything. Plain and simple, nada.

The Commander a.k.a. Artemis: Remembers absolutely everything, but like the generals and Minako, things do yet fuzzy. The memories _are _from 10,000 years ago.

6.) Why are the generals after Endymion?

---Simple, they need him and they also want to take him from the city. Up at the beginning of the chapter when they're discussing the possibility of Sere being in the city, Jed says "_It's a possibility [Sere being in city. But, I mean, wouldn't the Commander tell us if she was also in the city? That information could compromise everything. We can't just take Endymion if she's around; neither would allow it."_

Why would they want him out of the city? Protection possibly? Along with other disclosed stuff you aren't allowed to know yet. -cheeky grin-

7.) Is Endymion really a murderer? _(refer to chap. 3 The princess of his dreams says "After all, why would I allow the man that killed me to live any longer than necessary, Endymion?")_

----Yes, Endymion killed the woman from his dreams. She claimed to be the Moon princess, begged for Darien to find the crystal before a _cursed _child got a hold of it. But he doesn't know she isn't who she said she was. Only she knows that he killed her (In the SM) and she wants revenge as a result.

8.) Who is the woman from Darien's dreams that claimed to be the moon princess? Is she Serenity?

------No. I can honestly say that she isn't Serenity. I mean, why would he kill his own wife when he wanted to protect her so much that he threatened to kill one of the girls she considers a sister?

9.) Why did Darien and Serena sleep for so long?

----Darien used _a lot _of energy when he was Endymion. All those attacks, the strain of someone taking over him for a while, it all added up. So he slept to replenish his energy.

What about Serena? Her healing took a lot, simply. But she didn't sleep as long as Darien though.

10.) Why were Luna and Rei so vehement in making Serena confess to something she didn't even do?

---They're single-minded in their ways. I mean, take someone who you can't really stand most days because of their behavior and mix in her suspicious behavior on the battlefield (ie TM always protecting SM, then disappearing with TM to fight a general no one else saw, etc.) and stir in some memories and you get Serenatraitor. That's how they see things and that want to believe it so bad that it's the only thing they can believe anymore. They don't realize that there could be a million other reasons why Sere walked away with the generals and was joking around with them _(refer chap 5). _They just want someone to blame I guess you could say.

Umm... that's all the questions I can think of off the top of my head. I hope that helps you guys understand what's going on more though. If you have anymore questions, just drop a REVIEW and ask away! Thanks everyone!

And be sure to tune in next time for the _**BIG, HUGE, GIGANTIC **_secret will be revealed at the end of the next chapter. It's sure to have some of your jaw's dropping. Mine would have if I'd been reading along with you guys. I'm just super excited for it myself, I want to see the reactions to it so much and its not even posted yet. Lol

--- Tiger Celeste


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

Hello faithful readers! Here's an early chapter for everyone! Are you ready for the super-duper secret? Mwahaha! I'm not completely, 100 percent happy about how I delivered it but I think I got the job done. I mean, it's a tense situation and of course they had to--- oops. Shouldn't say too much just yet.

But yeah, this chapter begins _immediately _after the last. So it's really a continuation of chapter 14 but a stand alone in its own right since it would have been too long in one chap. So that means more Sere-Dare fluff up ahead. Yay! I love their convo, it gets a lot of things out in the open and taken care of.

Oh, btw I added a poll based on the continuation of this story after it's done! Check that out please. So that's all for now, please enjoy! And review!

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Motoki came out of his memories with a gasp. His looked around him, surprised to find himself on the backroom's sofa. For some reason he figured that he would still be lying on the arcade floor. He didn't let himself worry about his location however, becoming too focused on his thoughts.

His mind was still trying to wrap about the revelation the flood of memories brought him. It couldn't possibly be true but it made sense. Rei Hino couldn't possibly be Bellona, not the Bellona he knew in the very least. If she was however, something-- or _someone_-- got to her and influenced her too negatively.

The arcade worker rubbed his face, not at all surprised when he felt the tears running down it. _'And that's just the memories of one senshi_.' he thought as he lifted himself into a sitting position. '_Still Mercury, Jupiter, and the rest of my encounters with my sister to remember. Not to mention Princess Serenity and everyone else. I guess I'm lucky to even remember what I do.' _

He breathed heavily, swinging his legs around to face the correct way. _'What do I even remember truly?' _he thought as his eyes absently roamed around the room. _'Most of my remembered memories involve my sister and there are a few with the generals. Now I have all of my encounters with Bellona and Sailor Mars.'_

He sighed as he realized he truly didn't know _anything_. '_At least now I remember my own station, Prince of Sol. The kingdom of the Sun and my memories of life as the Prince.' _He frowned at the memory of the prince he used to be. _'Once a prince and trained warrior who was seasoned with many battles, now a soldier who has barely been in a fight. Pathetic.'_

The blonde was so enraptured with his thoughts that he didn't notice the girl enter the room, a wet washcloth in one hand and a glass of water in the other. His attention snapped up to her in shock as she exclaimed, "You're awake! Your friend and I were worried there for a minute."

"What happened?" the arcade worker questioned rhetorically as he rubbed the tears off his face, hoping the raven-haired girl didn't notice them. He breathed a sigh of relief as she didn't seem to notice, continuing her stride toward him. He couldn't help but study her as she walked closer. _'Hmm. Are you in there somewhere Bellona? Or are you truly gone?'_

"You just fainted on us." Rei frowned as she sit on the couch beside him, studying him with her piercing violet eyes. "Zander brought you back here when you didn't wake up after a few minutes. You know, so you'd be comfortable and all. Oh! And I just got one of the waitresses to cover the counter for you, so you can rest or go home if you want."

"Wh-where's Zander?" he asked quietly, as his head began to throb with pain. He couldn't help but groan as a particular throb caused him to clench his head in a futile attempt to make it go away. _'Too much to handle in such a short amount of time. I wish I could have remembered them over a few days, not in a sudden rush. Now I wouldn't be able to think properly for a few hours.' _

"He had to leave. Apparently, he told his roommate that he'd be back soon and didn't want him to worry." she explained as she handed Motoki the glass of water. He greedily drank it like he was dying of thirst. "I don't know why he didn't just call him over the phone."

"That's just his way of doing things." Motoki mumbled as he handed the priestess the glass back, now empty. He winced as he laid back down, his body remembering the feel of his fatal wounds. He glanced at Rei, studying her once more. _'When she's like this, she's almost the same Bellona I remember.'_

He wasn't fooling himself though, there was something definitely wrong with her. She _wasn't _the same Bellona, not the woman that he considered a sister and confidante. _'I've seen the way she is with the others. How she is with Darien and Serena. She would never have fawned over Endymion like that. She had Jadeite and never considered Endymion anything more than her friend. And Serenity, she treated her like a little sister. Now she seems so malicious.'_

He watched as Rei handed him an aspirin, not knowing when she got it. He took the medicine thankfully anyways, hoping for any reprieve from his headache and pain. "Are you all right?" she asked quietly as he settled into a more comfortable position.

"I'm fine." he smiled up at her gratefully, no matter his inner thoughts on her, Rei still was helping him. "Thanks for taking care of me like this, Rei. You know you don't have to stay though." he added when he saw her hands tightening around the handle of her umbrella she picked up from the floor. She was indecisive about her actions but he could tell she needed to go somewhere.

"You don't mind?" she asked sheepishly. "I have to go home and clean up, in case Grandpa shows up early tomorrow. I don't want him to come home in the morning to a dirty house." she winced and internally growled, thinking of her and the Dark Kingdom general's fight and the damage still in the living room. _'When I get my hands on him...'_

"No, I don't mind." the blonde replied as he closed his eyes, pretending to be sleepy. "I'm going to go back to sleep anyways." _'And think a little bit more before then.'_

"Get better, Motoki." Rei smiled again as she walked toward the door. She turned back to him with a concerned frown. "I'll tell Darien what happened if you don't manage to make it to work tomorrow, all right?"

"Thanks Rei." he mumbled sleepily, hearing the door close softly behind her. He frowned and opened his eyes again once he was sure she wasn't going to come back anytime soon. His mind immediately whirled with possibilities. _'Now, General Zoisite must realize that there's something wrong with Bellona too. I mean, there has to be a reason he invoked my memories like that. But what could have caused her to become so malicious? So different? Does he know something no one else does?'_

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Serena watched Darien fading figure in shock as he continued to walk away, unable to believe what he had said to her. _'That--that---ugh! Why did he have to bring that up!_' She grinned happily though when she realized that she _had _already got him back in retaliation, when she hit him over the head and slammed the door in his face. '_Good times. Good times_.' she giggled happily.

She turned around and began walking away, intent on finally making her way home. It had been a long day and after hiding out here in the park all day, despite the rain, she really wanted the comfort only her home could bring. _'I wonder if Mom will still think I visited Aunt Isuka. I still can't believe she thinks that. Aunt Isuka and her haven't gotten along in years! We stopped visiting her when I was little.'_

Serena was so lost in the thoughts and possibilities of why her mother would believe such a story that she didn't see the man that now stood before her until she crashed right into his chest. With a cry of surprise, she braced herself for impacting the ground, something she was familiar with now.

She opened her eyes in surprise a few moments later when the ground didn't come in contact with her posterior. She curiosity and surprise soon melted when her gaze met the grinning face of Darien. "I should have known." she grumbled as she straightened herself out, Darien removing the bandaged hand around her upper arm as she did so.

"You shouldn't really complain, Odango." Darien replied, hearing her grumble. "I could have easily let you fall."

She couldn't help but roll her eyes. "No you won't have. You always act like you'll let me fall before grabbing hold of me at the last second. The only times I've fallen to the ground with you around is when we _both _fall. Which, unfortunately, is _a lot!"_

Darien continued to grin down at the girl, even when thinking if what she said was true. _'Do I really do that? I didn't even realize I did. Must be an instinctual thing.' _He stared down at the girl, meeting her waterlogged figure. He quirked an eyebrow when he noticed her attention was elsewhere; she usually would be ranting by this time. Looking down, he saw her gaze was fixated on his bandages hands that were at his side. Nervously, he placed them behind his back and out of sight.

"Hey, Darien?" Serena questioned hesitantly as she looked into the man's eyes, silently daring him to lie. "What happened to your hands? They're all bandaged up."

"I had an accident at the arcade. A mug shattered before it burned and cut up my hand a bit." he shook his head as her brow furrowed in concern. "It's alright, they'll heal in no time."

"But---!" she retorted as she tried to reach for his hands. Darien cleared his throat nervously and took a surprised step back. He smiled down at the blonde to show her that his wounds weren't important; he knew he would heal within days.

"_Now_," he began as his smile widened considerably. "As I was going to say, it isn't _my _fault when we fall. If you'd watch where you're going, neither of us would have to met the ground."

Like he'd hoped would happen, Serena instantly returned to her previous state of mind and frowned up at him accusingly. "No, _you _need to learn to pay attention or stop standing in the middle of the sidewalk for goodness sakes! What are you doing here anyways? Didn't you leave?"

Serena distractedly wiped the droplets of water that were running down from her bangs with a sigh before pulling her hood forward more, hoping it would block out more of the rain. When Darien didn't answer immediately she looked up at him. Her blue eyes shown confusion when she saw how seemingly sheepish, and if not mistaken, embarrassed he now looked. "Darien?"

"I...uh.. I walking back home when I had a thought." he mumbled. He wouldn't met the blonde's eyes, thinking of how ridiculous he must look and sound. He knew he should have stamped down on that little voice. But _no_, he had already turned around and used his Tuxedo Mask jumping abilities -via treetops of course- to make sure he was ahead of the girl. By the time his doubts set in, she had already crashed into his chest.

"Which was…?" prompted the girl as she watched the man seemingly struggle with something.

"I was wondering…" he hesitated again before finally meeting his gaze. "No, never mind. It was a stupid idea." He walked away quickly, before she could say anything. Of course he hadn't gotten far, maybe a dozen yards, before he heard the sound of feet hitting pavement.

"Hey Darien, wait up!" he heard the pounding increase and increased his own pace in response. He finally reached the edge of the park grounds and walked onto pavement. "Jerk! I said _wait up!_"

He finally slowed his pace before stopping when Serena began to threaten him with violence the next time she saw him if he didn't stop. '_That girl. Isn't hitting me with shoes and slamming a door in my face enough?'_ He couldn't fault her on her violent tendencies though. While he was sure she would make good of her threats, especially when they concerned him, she didn't mean any harm in it. It was just her one-of-a-kind Serena way to show she cared about him without showing how much she cared. _'At least that's what I hope it is.'_

"Look, Odango." he began when she caught up to him. He gave a smile at her glare, even when she bent over to catch her breath. "I'm flattered with your offers to get involved in an intimate relationship with your book bag, but I said never mind alright?"

"Lo…look here, jerk. I…w-wouldn't run…. all that….all that w-way just to hear…. t-that lame excuse." She picked straightened herself, having finally caught her breath again. "And you know I will make good on my promises. So just tell me what you were going to say. It seemed important."

He frowned in mild annoyance, she sure seemed extra persistent today. Of course, it could be because he hadn't been around her in awhile. He quickly abandoned that train of thought with a shake of his head. "Fine. I was wondering if you'd want to get something to eat with me."

"Wha--?" Whatever Serena was expecting him to say that certainly wasn't it. _'Darien, of all people, is asking me to get something to eat? With him?' _She couldn't help but ask why.

"Because it dinner time?" he offered with a sheepish smile. Her withering glare told him she didn't believe that was his reason. "I guess I just wanted to prove that I was serious about not meaning all the things I've said and done to you."

"Haven't we gone over this already?" she asked, bewildered once again. With a sigh, she wiped off more water droplets before continuing. "I already know you didn't mean anything and you already know that I didn't take a lot of things to heart. It's just our odd way of being…whatever we are."

"Exactly." he murmured as he looked around for somewhere else to talk. Serena was getting soaked and his umbrella wasn't big enough to cover the both of them the way they were standing. His eyes light up when he stopped a bus loading area with an awning and bench. Perfect, and since even more people had gone home since he first talked to Serena, they won't be bothered.

"Exactly? What do you me---Hey!" she exclaimed when the man tugged on her upper arm and practically dragged her to the awning. She rubbed her upper arm when he finally released it. She hadn't expected that weird tingle. "Warn me next time will you?"

She was grateful nonetheless and sat down on the bench, beginning to wring out the long strands of her hair. She glanced up at him when he didn't sit down beside her. He was still standing half-way in and half-way out of the awning, looking unsure. She reached out and pulled him in with surprising strength, making him stumble in surprise.

Darien looked down at the girl, laughing. "Warn me next time will you?" he mocked her previous words teasingly. He sat down beside the girl, still smiling, and folded up his umbrella. He stopped smiling though when his knee hit hers. _'Is it just me or are these things getting smaller?' _

"I'm not gonna bite you." she grumbled as if she knew what he was thinking. He turned to her in surprise. "So what if it's not a big bench? It's better than nothing. Besides, you sat down pretty close to me earlier."

"Ah, yes." he exclaimed as if suddenly enlightened. "Another point to our closeness."

She squeaked and turned red at the reminder. "Stop saying that will you!? You were bandaging me, I don't think that counts as the _closeness _you're thinking. Besides, its not like you'll see me that unclothed again!"

He leaned against the wall behind him, happy that the conversation had diverted away from what he had asked her. "I simply meant a closeness as in friendship. Remember? I said _'like a newfound friendship'. _Shame on you Odango, thinking such thoughts. Who knew you were such a pervert."

"WHAT!?" she screeched as she turned to the man, unknowingly making her pigtails flew around. She burst out laughing as one of the wet strips of hair smacked the startled man right in the face. "Ha! That's what you deserve jerk!" she declared happily. She continued to giggle helplessly. "Oh my god, you should have seen you face! That was priceless. I wish I had a camera."

Darien growled as he plucked the soaking strands of blonde hair off his face. "That's not funny Serena."

"Of course it was." she smiled brightly. "And I think it was rightly deserved too. Now, back to business. Why did you really ask me to get something to eat with you?"

The dark-haired man leaned back against the wall with a frown. _'I knew her forgetting about it was too good to be true.'_ "I already told you."

"You didn't finish. I said we already knew you didn't mean it and I didn't take it to heart. That is was just our way of doing things for whatever we are. Then you said exactly. Exactly what?" she glanced at the man patiently as he started to wring out her hair again. She had to bite her lip to continue a few stray giggles however. _'I really do wish I had a picture of that.'_

"Exactly that. We don't know _what _we are. We argue and everyone thinks we hate each other, yet we both know there isn't any real hate or malice behind our fights. And look what happened at the park and what I did for you when I found you."

"So you're trying to say that you want us to establish what we are?"

"I guess." he shrugged helplessly, growing uncomfortable with the conversation. _'I just had to open my mouth didn't I? Why did I get myself into these predicaments. Serena and I were just fine, but _no_. I just had to want to establish what we were.'_

Serena was silent for a few minutes, so silent that Darien would have thought she wasn't even there if he still couldn't feel her knee pressed up against his. When she finally said something, her voice was so quiet Darien almost missed it.

"I consider you my friend." she mumbled. "I think I always have. After these last few days, I can honestly say you're one of my closest friends. I can trust you with things and I'm comfortable around you the majority of the time, if not _all _the time. Something I can't say about a few people right now. I was actually thinking a lot about this today in the park."

Something finally occurred to the college student and he looked over at Serena. "How long were you in the park today? Motoki said he saw you walk by this morning. And you were completely drenched when I first saw you."

"Since seven this morning. I felt suffocated in my room with all my thoughts. So I told my mom that I wanted to go to school. I never did though. I realized I would run into my friends and I don't want to deal with them yet. So I came here instead and I've been wondering around ever since."

"They thought you were sick." Darien stated softly. "For some reason everyone thought you had gone to Kyoto to take care of your family and gotten sick yourself."

"I know, my mom did too. I woke up in my bed and when I realized I wasn't with you anymore, it occurred to me that I had no excuse for being gone so long. When I finally got the courage to tell my mom some lie so she wouldn't worry, she came in my room. She was surprised and said she hadn't heard me come in. I was confused and asked her what she meant.

"We talked and I learned she thought I had been taking care of my Aunt Isuka and her family. And that I'd gotten sick myself and my aunt wanted me to stay there until I got better. So my mom told the school the same story."

"And when your friends asked where you were, your teacher told them the same story as well." finished Darien. "Making everyone else think that. And because that was the only story, no one questioned the possibilities of you not leaving."

"Yeah. But there's a flaw in the story." the blonde continued as she finished wringing out both strands of hair and let them go. She leaned back against the wall as well as stared at her companion out of the corner of her eyes. "My aunt and mom haven't gotten along it years. We stopped visiting her when I was eight."

Darien frowned, wondering what kind of mother would believe such an obviously false story. _'Unless of course she was tricked somehow. There's no telling what lengths Rei went to really.'_ "Why do you think she would believe that?"

"I don't know. The whole story is completely wrong but its like she doesn't realize it. Neither does my dad or brother. They all still think we get along with Aunt Isuka and visit her every year. So I just went along with it. I saw no harm when they already thought that was the truth anyways."

"Strange." the man commented idly as he settled into a more comfortable position. It didn't seem like they'd get that dinner anytime soon. "Now I have another question for you."

"No fair." The blonde pouted as she crossed her arms over her chest. "It's my turn to ask a question."

"This isn't twenty questions you know."

"It might as well be." she retorted before sticking her tongue out for good measure. "Seriously though, what happened that night?"

The blue-eyed man didn't need clarification on what night she meant. He ran a frustrated hand though his still damp hair, starring at the girl thoughtfully. "I woke up with a feeling something was wrong. Something wrong with _you_. To be honest, I didn't believe you went to Kyoto. You would have gloated the fact in my face weeks beforehand."

"Nu-uh!" protested the blonde, even though she knew she would have. The penetrating glare that Darien dealt told her he knew she would have too. "All right, so I probably would have. That's not the point here."

"_Anyways_," continued Darien with a shake of his head. "I felt that something was wrong and followed my instincts. Pretty soon I ended up at the shrine, seeing _Rei _walk up the steps with you over her shoulder. Like a bag of damn rice." he finished in a growl, tightening his bandaged hands together.

Serena winced when she heard the pure rage that Darien placed on Rei's name. _'I sure don't envy you at the moment.'_ At the mention of Darien finding her though, she stiffened in fear. _'He didn't say Sailor Mars, that's a good sign, right?'_ "What about after that?"

She was quiet as she waited for his response. Her blue eyes were sad at the thought of the fire senshi and her actions. '_How could they believe I would do something like betray them and the Princess? They should know me better than that.'_

"Um, well… about that." Serena glanced up, watching as Darien rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "I don't actually remember. I remember running up the steps and yelling your name, then nothing. The next thing I remember is waking up to your scream back at my apartment."

"You don't remember _anything_?" she asked, groaning in disbelief. "Not how you got me away from Rei or anything?" _'How am I supposed to know what happened when my rescuer doesn't even remember!?'_

"No. I wish I did though." he replied. He hesitated for a moment, watching the emotions fly across Serena's face. "Now it's my turn for another question. Do you want to tell me how, _why_, she did all that to you?"

Serena blanched, thinking of everything she could tell him and what it would mean. "I… I _can't_. I want to, I really do! I mean, you deserve to know with saving me and all. I just _can't _though. It would mean telling you things that aren't mine to tell."

The blonde looked away, ashamed at her inability to share her knowledge with Darien. _'I just can't tell him. It would mean having to tell him about the senshi and them thinking I betrayed them in the Silver Millennium. He would know too much and it would put him in danger with the Dark Kingdom if they ever found out about his knowledge.'_

Darien looked confused until understanding dawned on him. _'She's probably talking about Rei's identity. Even after all this, she still wants to protect her friend's secret. Her heart is _too _big.'_ "It's alright." he murmured after a few minutes of them walking in silence. "You can tell me whenever you want to, _if _you ever want to."

"I promise you Darien." she said seriously, her blue eyes penetrating Darien's own dark blue ones once again. "I _will _tell you one day, like I said, you deserve to know. I just _can't _now."

"I'll respect that." he replied with a nod of his head. He was silent for a few more minutes until he realized it was her turn in the game they created. "Anymore questions?"

"Uhhhh…I can't think of one at the moment. You ask another you, I can just tell you're brimming with excitement." she murmured, half-sarcastic half-thoughtful as she glanced out at the rain. It never seemed to stop.

"Uh, sure." Darien responded as he raked a hand through his hair in thought. What would be another good question? It suddenly hit him and his eyes light up as he turned back toward the blonde. "When did you leave my apartment? I never heard you leave."

The sheepish yet confused smile on the girl's face instantly put Darien on guard. That didn't look very comforting. "What about… _I _technically didn't leave your apartment."

"Yes you did. I looked all over this afternoon and couldn't find any signs of you."

"That's because I was back home. Yet, like I said, _I _didn't leave." At Darien's baffled look she grinned over at him impishly. "I don't understand it myself. The last thing I remember is loosing my footing going down the fire escapes and then fainting, I guess. The next thing I know, I'm opening my eyes to find myself back in my bed this morning."

"Just like that? Did you sleep walk or something?" he questioned in wonder. '_Why is it that everything concerning these situation is strange? I don't think I'll ever understand it.'_

"No. After I got over the fact that I was really back in my own bed, and before my mom walked in, the same thing occurred to me. But my feet weren't cut up or dirty like they would have been if I had sleep-walked." Serena was thoughtful for a minute before she seemed to remember something. Her blue eyes peered toward Darien hesitantly. "There was something else though."

Darien's mind was in a whirlwind as he listened to Serena. He thought of how mature Serena was sounding. How appropriate and open-minded she was acting toward their situation. And especially how she really did think things out thoroughly, no matter what anyone else thought of her. "What else was there?" he finally asked.

"Well, I'm not sure if I really saw it or not. I mean, I _was _half-awake. But there was this strange, I don't even know what to call it. Dust, particles, sparkly thingies? I don't know. All I know is that they were on me as I woke up."

Darien felt his throat close up in dread. He had a sinking feeling as to what those "sparkly thingies" were. The question burst out of his mouth before he could stop it. "Did these things have color?"

"Hmmm. Now that you mention it, I think they did. But it was odd, I remember seeing two colors. Silver and gold." She laughed suddenly, even as Darien's muscles tensed. "But they were probably my imagination anyways. So, yeah. That's why you never heard me. I never did leave, just woke up in my bed this morning."

"You thought of a question yet?" he asked, clearing his throat nervously. On one hand, he _was _glad Serena had seen the sparkles. It meant that his healing powers had activated sometime while they slept, helping her recover much faster. On the other hand, he _really _didn't want Serena to somehow link them back to him. He didn't want to endanger her if she found out he was Tuxedo Mask.

"Two actually." She cut off his impending protests with a glare. "And asking both is only fair. You asked all kinds of questions based on one event."

He rolled his eyes but didn't stop her from asking. He almost wished he had when she did though. He thought he had managed to avoid the awkward conservation once again. _'She never gives up does she? Can't she tell I'm trying to make her forget!'_

"Since we've established that I consider _you _a friend. A close one at that. What about me? Do you consider me a friend?"

The college student's mouth opened and closed like a fish, struggling to find something to say. Finally he released all his breath in a rush and answered hesitantly. "I do. You know how anti-social I am. At least from what you've seen at how I act at the arcade."

"No kidding." chimed in Serena with a dismayed 'tsk'ing sound. "You sit at the counter, do work, eat and drink lots of coffee, and talk to Motoki and me. That's it. I've been tempted more than a few times to drag you over to my…friends." her voice wavered and she winced, thinking that they weren't such great friends anymore. At least not all of them.

Darien grinned at the blonde and patted her head once he saw the sad expression on her face. When he was sure she'd been pulled out of her thoughts he answered. "Thanks for the offer, Odango. But I don't think sitting with a bunch of high school girls and listening to them gush about guys, makeup and all that other stuff will help me become more social."

The blonde couldn't help but burst out laughing at the mental picture Darien's words produced. Darien sitting around the arcade table, peering at Makoto intently as she raved and gushed about the boy who sat behind her in Chemistry. All the while Ami is determining what season he is best suited for and Rei is giving him a personality quiz.

And, best of all, herself gleefully painting his nails a bubblegum pink to finish off the wonder makeover she had given him. Consisting of bold blue eye shadow, rosy cheeks, fire red lips, and _everything_ else she could get her hands on.

"Oh my god. I'd pay money to see that." she said to herself, earning a suspicious narrowing of eyes from Darien. As if sensing his eyes on her, Serena turned toward him and sized him up. "Definitely would pay for it. Some big money too."

"Odango…" Darien warned as he rolled his eyes at the girl. "As fascinating, and probably mortifying for me, as your thoughts are. I was trying to answer your question. Unless, of course, you don't _want _me to."

"No, no!" she protested when she saw him begin to stand. "Stay right there mister! Finish answering your first question! I promise not to interrupt again."

He glanced at her warily before thinking of how to continue answering. "Like I said, I'm not very social. It's hard for me to make and keep friends. You're right, I usually only talk to Motoki and you plus an occasional classmate or lab partner. A few months after I met you, Motoki brought to my attention how comfortable I was with you. It was startling to say the least and it made me realize you'd somehow wormed your way into my life."

"So I'm a close friend then?" she questioned, biting her lip shyly. She peered up at Darien through her lashes and watched him.

He grinned before rolling his eyes good-naturedly. "Yes Serena. You're a close friend. Right up there with Motoki." _'Actually you're past Motoki probably.' _he finished mentally as he reflected on how reserved he could be with Motoki yet never could completely be with Serena.

"Good. Now that we've gotten this all resolved and figured out we're an odd pair of close friends what do you say about that dinner?" the girl practically as she beamed with excitement.

"So now you're the one asking me?" Darien teased as he felt all the remaining tension leave his body. He had been silly for trying to avoid this all night. "Am I right in assuming this your second question?"

"Yes and yes." she giggled as she stood up, watching Darien do the same. She looked out at the night sky, finally noticing just how much time had passed by. As she directed her attention back toward her companion she saw he'd also just noticed how late it'd gotten. "Unless you think it's too late and need to get back home that is?"

Darien frowned in contemplation, wondering what to do. He looked at his watch to check the time. "Well, it's 7:20. Shouldn't you be eating dinner with your family? I mean, I should have expected you to do that and not blurt out my question. You don't have to come with me you know."

"Are you kidding me?" came the exclamation along with a stern frown. Serena glared up at him accusingly. "I finally got an offer of free food from you, I'm not going to chance you bailing out of me buddy!"

She laughed then as she pulled her hood back over her head and gestured toward the disgruntled man to open his umbrella. He did so but not without a comment. "I'll keep my word, Odango. You know that."

She quirked a grin at him before replying with a "Duh!" She then grabbed his hand, gently he noticed absently, and tugged him toward the shopping district.

"I do believe I have the perfect solution!" she declared happily once Darien had allowed himself to be dragged by her. "You are going to buy me a nice slice of fudge cake for dessert. That way I can still eat dinner with my family when I get home and also eat with you."

"Won't that ruin--never mind." Darien mumbled, realizing nothing could ruin her appetite. It was another Serena thing. "You want some hot chocolate too?"

Serena looked back at him in surprise and Darien couldn't help but blink at his own forwardness, even if it was only an offer for hot chocolate. That was certainly unexpected. Nonetheless he didn't retract his words, he was serious on proving to Serena that she was his friend and he'd try to be nicer to her. And if proving it meant going through her stomach, so be it.

"Sure." smiled Serena after a few moments of silence. Suddenly it occurred to her that she had still been holding Darien's hand. She dropped it like it was on fire before turning her flaming face forward again. "That'll be nice. Especially during this weather."

They walked in silence for almost five minutes, both lost in a vortex of thoughts and feelings. As he walked beside the girl, it occurred to Darien that she was so lost in thoughts she had been veering off to the side and her hood had been blown off again sometime or another. With a frown, he reached out and pulled Serena under the covering of his umbrella and against his side.

At her startled "eep!" and questioning look, the blue-eyed man let go of her arm and stared forward again. "Just want to make sure you don't get wetter than necessary. Otherwise you _will _get sick and you don't need that in addition to your injuries."

"Thanks." The blonde blushed at the man's obvious care, wondering _why _he was openly showing how concerned he was. Even though he admitted he'd considered her a close friend, this behavior wasn't like him. He was usually so reserved. _'I wonder if he's felt different like I have. He certainly seems freer, lighter, in just the time I've been with him today. Something important _did _happen at his apartment but I can't figure out what.'_

"Hey Serena?" She made a sound in the back of her throat to show she'd heard her black-haired companion. "Where are we going?"

"Oh! There's this new café that opened in the shopping district. They're supposed to be really good and I'd figured this would be the best time to visit. Do you mind?"

"No, that's fine." he murmured. After almost fifteen minutes and one argument later, they were walking through the door of the café. Of course in typical Darien-Serena fashion, neither were in the best of moods anymore.

"Finally." groaned out Darien as he shut the door behind him and closed his umbrella thankfully. "I can't believe you got us lost."

The blonde frowned, thumping the man's arm roughly. "I _told _you already! It _just _opened, you jerk. I haven't had a chance to visit it yet. How was I supposed to know where it was exactly, hmm?"

He rolled his eyes as he allowed his eyes to roam around the café. He was surprised that it had still been open this late but he guessed that they were trying to have long work days to help establish a good reputation. Seeing the quiet atmosphere, pleasant surroundings, and most importantly the delicious looking food, he doubted it would take long before people were flanking the place.

He another whack to his upper arm had him glancing down at Serena. A fierce glare was etched on her face and he backed up hesitantly. "I was talking to you." she pointed out with a waving of her finger. "You shouldn't be mean and ignore someone like that."

"I already told you what I thought. _I _wasn't the one to get us lost." he repeated himself. "You, Odango, are the one who loves every kind of food on Earth. You should have been able to smell this place a mile away."

She huffed with anger, opening and closing her mouth for a few moments before she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Without another word, she stalked over the counter to see the café's selection.

Darien stared after her warily. That wasn't like Serena, and as much as he hoped that was a sign of her newfound maturity, he couldn't help but think that it mostly wasn't. And that meant he was probably in for an ear-screeching reprimand once they were outside. He glanced at the hours sign that hung from the door. _'Weekdays: Closes at 8:15 p.m.'_

He glanced down at his watch again, seeing that was almost thirty minutes away. _'I wonder if I don't say anything and not complain about being here until closing time, if she'd forget about whatever she's planning?' _He contemplated it for a few moments before deciding it wouldn't hurt to try. After all, he had nowhere to go and Serena hadn't seemed very concerned about eating dinner with her family on time.

"It's nice of you to treat your girlfriend like this." came an elderly voice behind Darien, startling him out of his thoughts. He turned around to see an elderly lady about 60 years old wearing a blue checked apron and black glasses. She smiled at him softly before patting her bun wrapped-hair absently. "My husband still does things like this for me all the time. That sweet dear."

Darien was sure that his face couldn't have been redder. Him and Odango!? Surely it didn't seem like they were dating. Friends? Yes, close ones in fact. Significant others? No, definitely not. "Uhhhh." he rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "She's not my girlfriend. We're just friends."

The old woman frowned. "No? I was so sure. I'm never wrong on these things." She tapped her chin thoughtfully before glancing toward Serena. "Too bad. She seems like such a sweet girl."

Darien turned to look at the blonde girl as well. He smiled when he spotted her, her nose against one of the glass casings._ 'She deserves this, especially after what she's been through.'_ "Yeah, she is." he replied softly. He didn't notice as they woman chuckled softly and left him alone to his thoughts again.

He walked toward Serena once he noticed the old lady had left. Coming up behind her, he saw her trying to decide between two different cakes. "So Serena." he began as he bent down beside her to look for himself. "What have you decided on getting to cement our closeness?"

"You mean your _delusional _closeness." she grumbled. A smile pulled at her lips nonetheless as she turned toward the dark-haired man. "And besides, I've decided to save that for another day."

She stood up then, grinning somewhat manically in Darien's opinion. She twirled around for a second before heading to the counter on the other side of the room next to the employees' door. Darien followed her hesitantly. "I don't remember that being part of the deal."

"Well, I've decided it should be." she retorted, sticking her tongue out at him briefly. "This little café visit today is just your apology for being a pervert."

Darien's cheeks burned when the old lady suddenly walked out the employee doors and stopped in her tracks, catching the end of Serena's statement. Her stern, disapproving glance told him she was thinking of something completely different.

"Gee, say that a little louder won't you Serena." he grinned at the woman charmingly as he muttered this to the blonde. _'Maybe I _should _have told her Odango and I were dating. She wouldn't have looked so disapproving then I bet.' _His eyes widened in surprise as an cane suddenly hit his shin. He groaned as he headed toward the other side of Serena, safe against the wall.

He frowned at the girl when he heard a muffled giggle. He couldn't help the turning up of the corners of his mouth as he rubbed his abused shin. He leaned down to whisper to Serena. "And they say that at the young aren't respectful, huh?"

Serena giggled helplessly before she turned to wink at the old woman still watching them. She then released another giggle before turning to look back at the pastries and deserts in front of her thoughtfully. "Hmm… I don't think they have fudge cake, Darien. Too bad. MmmMm… brownies. That's enough close, right?"

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Zoisite breathed heavily as he shut the door behind him. After he had placed Motoki in the backroom and made sure Bellona --_'No, Rei. That _couldn't _have been Bellona.'_-- could handle him when he woke, he had immediately raced back to his and Jadeite's joint hotel suites.

Now, as he stood there in the living area and walked toward Jadeite on the couch, he realized that he probably shouldn't have raced back so soon. He absently watched the raindrops that covered him drop to the ground in a steady pace, knowing that since he hadn't bothered with his umbrella that it wouldn't stop anytime soon and the floor under him would be soaked. He couldn't bring himself to move, or even care, though.

His lips twitched when he noticed that Jadeite had finished dying his hair while he had been away. "You know," he drawled in amusement. "red, auburn even, doesn't seem to suit you very well."

Jadeite's head snapped up and he glared at his friend, a quick retort on his lips. He couldn't think of what it was though when he spotted Zoisite. "Holy crap, Zoi." he began as he raced to grab a towel. He returned in a few moments, shoving the towel into the black-haired man's arms. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

"No, _worse_." came the absent reply as the man walked toward the couch and sat down next to where his friend was still standing. He then began taking off his shoes, not wanting them to soak anymore of the carpet. "I saw Bellona."

It took a few moments before Zoisite realized what he said. He winced and resisted the urge to slap himself in the face for his own stupidity. He looked up at his comrade wearily. Like he had expected, a great smile was sliding across the auburn-haired man's face. "Uhhh…Jed?"

"You saw Bellona, my firebird?" His question was undeniably giddy and Zoisite instantly felt awful. _'Me and my big mouth. Great going, Zoi. You really are an idiot.'_

"No, I saw _Rei_." Zoisite corrected as he turned away from the happy man. He peeled off his jacket and walked away, trying to end the conversation there. He knew that the other man wouldn't be deterred though, he easily followed him into the kitchenette.

"What do you mean Rei?" Jadeite questioned, his hopes fading before him in a whirl of emotions. "Make-up your mind, Zoisite. Did you see my Belle or not?"

"Both." he answered, trying to skid around the question. He opened the mini fridge only for it to be slammed shut by Jadeite's hand. He sighed and looked up, not surprised by the man's rapidly forming anger and confusion. _'I can't blame him. I would angry too if Jed came in here and said he saw my soul mate one minute and said he saw someone else instead the next.'_

"Answer the damn question." growled the other man as he leaned against the mini-fridge, using his weight to keep the man from opening it. "Did you see Bellona or _not_? It shouldn't be a complicated question."

"I already told you." answered Zoisite calmly as he walked back to the living area. "I saw _both_. She was Bellona but _not _at the same time. I know that this Rei is not Bellona; not completely at the very least."

"Quit lying. That isn't possible. Either she was or she wasn't." the other man angrily questioned, while internally he was hurt at having his hopes ripped away as soon as he was given them. _'I haven't even allowed myself to think about Bellona. Now this happens as soon as she is mentioned.'_

"Fine then." snapped the green-eyed man as he turned around toward Jed. He had tried to stay calm to Jadeite's sake but his behavior was just too unreasonable. "She wasn't Bellona. End of story."

"No, that _isn't _the end of the story. Why the _fuck _did you say it was Bellona when it wasn't!?" yelled Jadeite as he finally snapped himself, shoving Zoisite hard against the wall. He pressed his forearm against his friend's neck with a growl. "This isn't funny Zoi and you damn well know it. I don't go around saying I saw your wife when know it wasn't her!"

"I'm sorry if I was mistaken then!" Zoisite shouted as he tried to shove the man away. The blue-eyed general wouldn't let himself be moved though, tightening his arm around the man's neck causing the other to choke.

"That's not something you would mistake, Zoisite! There's only one Bellona walking around!"

"I guess your wrong then!" Zoisite choked out as he gained the upper hand and managed to shove the man away from him. "Because there must be!" The black-haired man grabbed a hold of Jadeite's arm and twisted it around his back, shoving the man's front against the wall. "Now calm the hell down!"

"Not until you tell me the truth!" retorted the auburn-haired man as he wildly tried to buck the man off his and release his arm. "You're hiding something and I know it!"

"No I'm not." came the growl as the green eyed man freed one hand to shove Jadeite against the wall to stop his bucking. "I made a mistake and it's that simple. Since you are oh-so-smart and say someone can't be Bellona and still be her at the same time, I _didn't _see Bellona. End of story."

"How can you be sure? She _could _have been Bellona and you were too stupid and thought she wasn't completely her! Whatever the hell that means!" came the fierce accusation as Jadeite kicked one of his legs back at his capture's shin, causing him to loosen both the grips on his arm and shoulder. He quickly freed his shoulder and used it to smash backwards into Zoisite.

He smiled in grim victory when he heard the man's muffled curse and felt Zoisite let go completely. He turned around and pounced before Zoisite could recover. After a quick tumble between the two as the fought to stay on top, Jadeite elbowed Zoisite's stomach and flipped them over again, gaining the advantage.

Both were breathing harshly as they glared at one another. Both men were easily sporting numerous bruises and Zoisite's nose continued to bleed from when Jadeite smashed his shoulder into it. Neither allowed time for the other to completely recover though. Jadeite was instantly smashing his punch into any of Zoisite's available skin while Zoisite struggled to free himself from Jadeite's grip around his stomach and also punch Jed in-between his struggling.

Zoisite hit a stroke of luck as Jadeite momentarily slowed in his attacks, his energy draining from him. He wrapped his legs around the blue-eyed man's neck, forcing himself up so Jadeite was forced down to the ground with the tight grip around his neck still.

"This…this isn't solving any--anything." wheezed out the green-eyed man as he winced at the pain all over his body. He stared back down at his friend, wincing at the sight of the man's ice blue eyes; he was still incredibly angry. "I'm sorry, Jed. But you need to calm down. If we have to stay here like this all night so you do, then you know I will."

"How--?" hissed Jadeite as he continued to try to pry his friend's legs away. He succeeded when he drove his fingernails into the man's ankles and pulled, tearing off skin in the process. "How the hell do you know it wasn't Bellona?"

"Because Bellona is in a fuckin' coma!" Zoisite finally yelled as he allowed his legs to slacken. The man below him fell to the floor with a stunned thud, not even flinching at the sound and feel of his head hitting the wooden floor beneath him.

Zoisite raised himself onto his elbows, glaring at Jadeite. Pain lurked in his glaring eyes despite the anger that swirled inside him however. He hadn't wanted to tell his companion, at least not like this. Jadeite had asked for it though and he had to take the news like a man.

"Aren't you going to say something?" he questioned after a few tense moments of stunned silence. At Jadeite's bewildered and own pained look, he closed his own green eyes before looking around at the damage they'd caused in their fight. "You asked for it. You wanted the truth."

"W-when?" was the only thing that could come out of the red-haired man's mouth. Jadeite's mind refused to wrap around the idea of Bellona, his sweet passionate firebird, being in a _coma_. A coma! It wasn't possible.

"Since the Fall." Was all Zoisite offered as he picked his battered body up off the floor. He winced as he felt his ribs contract painfully. No doubt one of them was broken, or severely bruised at the very least.

He looked down at his friend, seeing him in no better shape. Only Jadeite's physical wounds no doubt paled in compare to the heartache he was going through. If it'd been him in Jadeite's position, he didn't know what he'd do. He offered a hand down at the shell shocked man, a truce to settle everything here and now.

The blue-eyed man stared at the hand unseeing for the longest time, prompting Zoisite to try to coax the man up. "Come on, Jed. We can patch each other up and talk about this."

Words, it seemed, was all that was need to snap the man out of his stupor. He glared up at Zoisite vehemently and shook his head hard. "No. I refuse to believe you. You're _lying_, you have to be. I'd have known if Bellona was in a coma! I'd have _known!_"

The offered hand dropped in surprise. Incredulous green eyes met cold blue one. "_Lying_? You think I would lie to you about something this important? Why in Terra's name would I do a damn thing like that!"

"Why don't you tell me that Zoi?" the man asked coldly. He stood up, not even wincing as he felt his body pulse with patches of pain. "What are you gaining from lying to me like this?"

Zoisite frowned in exasperation. Jadiete could be frustrating yes, but never--_never_-- was he this bad. He knew that his whole situation would eventually take its toll on one of them. And unfortunately for Jadeite, he was the first to lose his control on everything.

Between learning Endymion might be alive and having to track him down, having to feel Terra struggle continuously against Beryl's attacks, the emotional turmoil that still resided in every one of them based on the Silver Millennium Fall, and now learning that Bellona- the love of his life and soul mate- was in a coma and had been for centuries. It was too much to handle at once.

As his eyes looked onto Jadeite's cold blue ones, Zoisite decided then and there that they needed Endymion more than ever. Having the King would help with all their problems. And if they were lucky, maybe he could figure out a way to awaken Bellona from her coma. He might be her only hope since they had no idea where Serenity was. After all, he only had suspicions she might be in Tokyo as well. There really was no telling if she was even alive.

"All right Jadeite." he stated firmly, glaring back at the enraged man. "Right now I don't care if you believe me or not. You can hate me with every fiber in your being for all I care but know you need to calm the hell down and get your priorities straight.

"I know what Bellona is to you and I have an idea of what you're going though and feeling right now. But we _can't _worry about Bellona yet, don't you understand? Retrieving our King is more important. After he's here, I'll tell you everything I know."

The auburn-haired man paced around in a circle like a caged tiger, debating his opinions. Zoisite _knew _where Bellona was, if she was in fact in a… a _coma_. And based on the determined set of the other's eyes, he knew that he couldn't beat her location out of the man. He also knew that Endymion was important, how could your King _not _be? But, this was _Bellona_.

Then again, it _was _King Endymion. If Endymion was found and taken care of, Bellona would be placed higher up on the priority list; he would make sure she would be. And he himself would have less responsibilities once Endymion was settled and up-to-date. Terra could be well taken care of by Endymion and all the mysterious of what happened on Lunaria might be solved because Endymion was there and witnessed everything first hand.

"Fine." Jadeite finally ground out as he stopped his pacing and faced Zoisite. "I will focus on Endymion. Once he is found however, do not think that I will have forgotten about Bellona. You _will _tell me why she's in a Terra forsaken coma and why you never bothered to tell me!"

The black-haired man gave a satisfactory, yet grim, nod. "Good. We are meeting Darien at the arcade tomorrow. Seven thirty when he picks up class notes from Motoki. We'll leave at seven." When Jadeite gave a hesitant nod in return, the black-haired general stomped away and opened the door to his adjoining suite before slamming it behind him. He'd leave the mess they'd caused to the suite to Jed. He had his own wounds to clean first.

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Finished 1/22/08 Posted:

Dun dun dun! So did you guess the super secret. Bellona is in a coma, _what!? _Yeah, so it probably doesn't seem all that gigantic to some people, but I assure you that it is!

Cause I mean, if Bellona is in a coma and has been for centuries, who the hell is Rei? And why does she act like Bellona did, yet have a completely negative reactions for everyone around here. She flirts with Darien, when Bellona never saw Endymion as more than a friend. She beat up Serena for the sake of being right when Bellona would never have done such a thing because Sere was like a sister. And she is blah… when concerning the scouts and Luna. Suspicious I tell you. It does cause a lot of problems later on.

So yeah, hmmm… the generals will met Darien tomorrow in their new hair colors. What fun that will be huh? And Motoki remembers he was once the Prince of Sol, the Sun Kingdom. Will that cause him to rebel, possibly! I mean, he _is _a prince even if its to a kingdom long gone. Now he's a simple soldier. Think about it.

How'd you like the Sere-Dare conversation? I think they got a lot out of the way and we see how fast their relationship is progressing. And a lot of that progress is in part to what happened while they were sleeping those few days. And what exactly that is should be revealed…next chapter? I don't know, I have a long scene written out so far but it isn't based on what happened yet. It's a convo involving Minako though! Stay tuned for that.

Haha, I loved Darien's sarcastic comments, did anyone else? Intimate relationship with book bags tsk, tsk; being mistaken for a couple; Serena's vision of Darien with the girls, hilarious. I so want to draw that. Too bad I suck at art.

That's all for this chapter I do believe. Please review and give me feedback! Thank you!

Fire Celeste


	16. Chapter 16

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

Hello readers! I was inspired to write the last few chapters relatively fast and it was the same with this one! And it's the **LONGEST CHAPTER **to date! Yay! Next chapter is a different story though, only have one 6 page scene written out so far and I'm stuck on how to deliver news in the next. So complicated…Oh well.

But yes, for all of you **Venus **lovers out there, **she's in almost every single**scene unintentionally too! And we learn what happened at the apartment between Dare/Sere, if you blink you'll miss it though!

The general meet some people, they get mad, normal stuff. A misunderstanding is seen which is sure to cause trouble for everyone! And three( four kinda) new characters are introduced! And Motoki makes jokes!

Lots of stuff, just makes you want to ignore this and read huh? How many people already skip all this though, raise of hands please?

Onto the story! Review please and don't forget about my poll!!

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A young golden-haired woman glanced up at her sky once more before sighing. She really wished her senshi uniform came with a place for a watch, or that she'd ever remember to place one in her subspace pocket. Looking at the position of the moon though, she'd guess it was almost 3:30 am. She closed her eyes in deep thought, wondering if he was ever going to show up. He had asked for them to meet at 3 am_sharp_.

'_For all his orders and protocol, you'd think he would know how to keep track of time better.' _she thought to herself irritably. She rolled her eyes at her thoughts though; she should have known he'd be late. She couldn't recall a time he'd ever missed an appointment. _'He probably was never a minute late in all his life. Tardiness was bound to catch up with him some time.'_

She was startled a large thump sounded a few feet away. She placed a hand over her racing heart, even as she mentally berated herself for losing herself in her thoughts and letting her guard down. _'Some soldier I've become. I could have been killed and never saw what was coming!'_

She called forth her heart-linked chain instantly as she let her hand drop from her heart. Her blue eyes swept around warily and she moved slowly toward where the sound came from, not letting her guard drop again. She couldn't afford to make another mistake like that. She refused to die, not when there was still so much to do.

Her muscles tensed when a pained groan sounded, causing thoughts and possibilities to swarm her. She grew slightly pale, hoping it wasn't what she thought it was. In only a few paces she knew her answer. It first came in the form of a once pristine white uniform, a red stain slowly forming around the right thigh and stomach. Next came a shock of silvery-white hair, glowing slightly in the moonlight. Then came the skin, considerably tan considering where he spent most of his time. Then again, it always was.

It was his face, his identity, that caused her to drop to her knees beside his head however. Her fingers grew lax, making her weapon drop to the ground. It returned from where it came, obeying her subconscious command to do so.

"Oh…Kunzite. What has she done to you?" she whispered to the injured man as she moved his head to her lap, gently running her fingers through his light colored hair.

His gave her a bittersweet smile, even as his eyes continued to cloud over in pain. "…I think I vag…vaguely recall a w-wager on when I would be…late."

She laughed, even as tears gathered in her eyes. She closed her eyes in thought momentarily before pulling a towel out of nowhere. She maneuvered around the man carefully, applying pressure to his stomach wound. She'd seen numerous injures like this before; it was easily identified as a sword's stab wound.

She continued to apply pressure before glancing into the man's light blue eyes. "If I remember correctly," she finally murmured. "you claimed _'I shall never be late or, Terra forbid, miss an appointment. That is as guaranteed as there are stars in the universe. And even if that event came to be, I would never miss an appointment for I would travel with the help of light-bugs if need be.'_ I always thought that statement was too dramatic for you, not to mention odd. Now, I would have understood _Nephrite _saying it. Not you though."

Kunzite wheezed as he tried to laugh, reflexively clenching upward. He instantly released a pained groan at the movement and fell back to the ground. The golden-haired woman winced in sympathy, knowing it would take awhile before anything would begin healing. _'I can honestly say that this is one time I'd wish he would have injected more of that negative energy into his body.'_

"What are you th-thinking?" the silvery-white haired man wheezed out. He looked up at his lover, seeing the sheer determination that was painted onto her face. She certainly wasn't thinking of their bet.

"Nothing." The answer was too quick and they both knew it. Sailor Venus sighed as the man below her gave her a piercing stare. _'It's a wonder he can still do that, coated in blood that he is.' _"Fine. I was thinking that this would have been one time I'd wish you would have taken more of that dark energy."

He gave her a disbelieving look. "Are you bloody _mad?_"Venus couldn't help but flinch at his harsh tone. She _knew _she was crazy for even suggesting it, but he could act calmer with her. It's wasn't as if she had ordered him to inject more dark energy into his body. _'Sometimes I don't understand why I cared for him the way I do.'_

"If I'd injected myself with more of that blasted poison I'd be worse than those pathetic generals Beryl has running around her plane. At least what's left of them anyways."

She instantly noticed Kunzite's surly tone and quickly directed his anger away from her. "So it was Zoicite that did this? Not Beryl?"

"He caught me off guard." he began to explain as he closed his blue eyes in thought. "Beryl called me to the throne room to discuss Zoicite and what I thought of his plan thus far. Apparently he overheard me say that I would prefer someone more reliable and more fear worthy, someone such as myself, to head the plan. Needless to say, he wasn't amused by my thoughts. He hid behind a pillar like a coward and attack me with a sword and stabbed two dark crystals into me as I was turning the corner. He disappeared before I could return the favor."

Venus couldn't help but roll her eyes as she began pushing away the red material around the man's stomach. "You certainly are causing more trouble than you should." she winced as she said this, unable to believe how loose her tongue was tonight. _'It's probably because we have so few meetings. Kunzite must be the only one left I feel comfortable with. I can't help but miss this. This __**normality**__.'_

"No." the man's tone was harsh once again as he moved away from her actions. Kunzite glared at her as he pushed himself into a sitting position, not letting her know how much the wound still hurt. He knew it would heal; they always did. "You are the one that is certainly causing more trouble than needed. Really, Áine? You know Endymion has done nothing to deserve such hatred."

She glared back, just as viciously as the man was. "If you and your _pathetic Prince _had never come to Lunaria, none of this would have happened!"

"Now wait a damn minute!" The white-haired man burst out as he watched his companion stomp away. He struggled to his feet and limped his way toward the woman's disappearing figure. "If we hadn't of come to Lunaria, then we'd all have died prematurely and never have known why!"

Venus whirled around, fire burning in her eyes. "We _wouldn't _have died; I- the senshi! _Serenity!_- would _still _be living in peace on Lunaria, and you would still be living here with your damned men and Endymion; like everyone always had! Everything was just fine until Endymion showed up and lured Serenity to this forsaken planet!"

"You forget," he hissed as he stalked up the woman and grabbed her shoulders. His fingers bit into them and he couldn't bring himself to loosen his hold. Her behavior was even worse this time, he feared he was slowly loosing her. _'No. I will not allow herself to be consumed. I refuse to let her go. Not again.'_

"You forget," he repeated himself as he drew in a harsh breath. Kunzite's fingers flexed as he stared into the warrior's cold blue eyes. "that I was _born _on Lunaria! I lived there until I _**escaped **_from what that planet was becoming! Serenity did the exact same thing! She willingly left to bring something better for her people. With or without Endymion's appearance, she _would _have left, no doubt about it. And I cannot say that I see any shame in that!"

"There is shame in abandoning your home!" Venus exclaimed as she roughly pushed Kunzite away causing him to stumble back a few steps in surprise. She turned away to stare out at the night, refusing to meet his eyes. "In abandoning your birthright, your friends, your duties, there is always shame. Always."

Understanding finally dawned on the general. His shoulders slumped in defeat as his mind whirled with thoughts. _'What has started with Endymion and Serenity has come down to this. To all her actions. To all her deceiving. Something none of us predicted.'_

He was silent for a few moments as he too turned to look out at the night. He absently passed a hand over his stomach, feeling the wounds thinning in the healing process. _'The only good that dark energy gave me.' _he thought with a frown, glancing down at his thigh to see it had also begun healing._ 'I bet I can almost heal as well as Endymion now.'_

"Do you still blame me?" the senshi finally murmured after a long stretch of silence. Kunzite glanced out of the corner of his eye to see she was studiously avoiding looking in his direction still, staring out at the night sky as if it had all the answers in the universe.

He answered without hesitation, unable to bring himself to deny the harsh truth. "In honesty, I do. You could have done so many things differently, Áine. Yet you didn't."

She was hurt at his blunt honestly, he could instantly tell when she seemed to recoil. She stiffened when she noticed what she was doing however, turning to the man to try to redeem herself. "It seems we are even then. I still blame your Prince."

"Do not forget he is _your King _as well." the man murmured in reply. He stared out at the star-dotted sky wistfully now, taking in a sight he rarely saw anymore. "He is everyone's King and we should be proud and honored by that fact."

Venus couldn't help but snort in amusement. "Some King. Surely couldn't protect his people when it came down to it. Hell, he wasn't even on his planet when he was needed most. And now he doesn't even know of his birthright. Endymion's a lost cause if you ask me."

He shrugged nonchalantly, glancing down at his ruined uniform distastefully. "Perhaps. We can't know if that is the case though. We are indeed lost on things, myself especially. I hardly ever leave Beryl's realm to see things for myself."

"Hmm. Perhaps you are lost, but I surely am not." Kunzite stared at her suspiciously, she knew something and was willingly withholding the information. "I know what's going outside our meeting places."

"No one knows everything. You only know things you've seen." he protested._'What does she know? And what is happening on Terra now? Does it have to do with Endymion?'_

"Indeed. No one does know everything and perhaps that's what's best." She glanced up at the moon, smiling secretly. She turned to him suddenly and grinned up at him. "Now, I do believe you have a wager to pay for Kunzite."

He cocked an eyebrow at the abrupt change of conversation, yet was relieved that the past was finally staying where it belonged for the time being. He cleared his throat and gave her a small frown. "I think that's unfair. Interference was clearly there. If that damned…_thing _hadn't attacked me, I would have been on time. Early in fact."

She rolled her eyes at the man's attempts. "Be the valiant man I know you are." she declared, smiling at his surly frown"Do the honorable thing and owe up to your promises."

"I do believe that we both know how honorable I am. I always keep my word." he countered, miffed at the shot to his honor. '_After all it wasn't me who…No, no. Don't start that again.' _He sighed heavily, both at himself and his thoughts"What is it you want?"

The warrior's cornflower blue-eyes clashed with the general's own light blue-eyes seriously. "I want your trust."

Kunzite's brows furrowed in confusion as his blue eyes shown with disbelief. "Surely that isn't what you want. There is not something you desire more? Like that sword of mine you preferred?"

She hesitated for a second before shaking her head. "That is all I desire from you right now. I know I lost your trust," she waved off his protests. "No, no matter what you say I know that what I did upset you; made you feel betrayed. It caused mistrust to fester in your heart and you do not fully trust me."

He sighed heavily again, letting his eyes wander away so he wouldn't have to see the sadness in her own. "It is true. Even though you've told me why you are doing what you're doing, I still cannot completely understand your actions. It seems extreme to me, what lengths you are going for to simply protect one person. I cannot help but think that you are also doing this for yourself as well."

She smiled sadly. "You shouldn't forget that I am doing this for my own beliefs as well." She watched him narrow his eyes at her. "Yes, I still believe Prince Endymion is at fault."

"The King didn't order or tell Serenity to go to Terra, I hope you know. He didn't even know she was on Terra until they came upon one another." Kunzite replied quietly, protecting his King's honor like he always had. "They barely spoke to one another during the delegation in fact."

"Maybe words weren't needed." she countered. Sailor Venus sighed after she said this, not wanting or letting herself be drawn into another argument so soon. "Now, do I have your trust or not Kunzite?"

The light-blue eyed man hesitated then, memories assaulting him of what he had seen his love say and do. He made the mistake of glancing back down at her, seeing the pleading and hope in her eyes. With a bitten-off groan he nodded slowly. _'I never could deny her anything when it came down to it. Some things never change I suppose.'_

Kunzite winced when a sudden pain attack him, causing his knees to buckle to the ground involuntarily. He ignored Áine's startled shout as Beryl's voice assaulted his mind. _"Kunzite." _he couldn't help but shiver at the sound. Slithery and pure evil were the only things he could ever describe it as. _"Come to the throne room at once. Tardiness will be punished accordingly."_

He waited for her to elaborate on why she would want him back so soon before realizing she wasn't going to reveal anymore. With a tightening of his throat, he mentally answered her. _"At once my Queen. I will not delay."_

He came back to awareness with Áine hovering over him in concern. She had pressed her hand to his forehead and was frowning in worry. When she saw that he was looking at her, she dropped her hands with a slight blush. It was so easy to slip back in previous roles. "Are you all right?" she questioned in concern.

"Yes. It's an effect of not having a great deal of dark energy in my system. My body is instinctively fighting against her and her evil presence in my mind while I am trying to stop my body so she will not notice the struggle. It's always like this; usually not so strong though."

The golden-haired woman was startled by the news and she was positive it showed on her face. "Are you sure you will be fine? That does not sound reassuring. I mean, why is it so strong now?"

"Because the dark crystals are still fragmented in my body from when I shattered them. They're reacting to Beryl." He answered, shaking his head at her concern. He began to rise up on shaky feet, Minako rushing to help him until he regained balance. "I will be fine. It waves off after a few minutes. I can hardly feel it any more now as a matter of fact."

The senshi was immediately relieved and Kunzite was instantly glad he hadn't told her the truth. He could still the lingering traces of the evil, negative energy swirling through his mind and would for a few more hours. "I must go now." he whispered at last.

"I understand. I should as well." Minako replied as she looked over to see the sun beginning to rise. She looked indecisive for a moment before launching herself into his stomach, mindful of his still healing wound, and pressing herself against his warm chest. She couldn't help but relish in that moment.

The golden-haired woman enjoyed it even more when her love wrapped his arms around her form and hugged her to him with all his might. Tears gathered in her eyes as she felt him nuzzle the top of her head and breath in her shampoo. It was when she felt a kiss on her brow that she finally looked up.

He stood there sadly, looking like she was feeling inside. _'Why must it be like this between us? Was I really so wrong? Could I have done things differently as to have avoided all this pain for myself and everyone else?' _she asked herself. "Kunzite…"

His name snapped the silvery-white haired man out of his thoughts. With a sad smile, he kissed her forehead and hugged her tightly again before stepping back. "Farewell, Áine, my bright goddess of love. I will see you once again next month."

With that Kunzite disappeared, smiling that same sad smile all the way. It only made it harder for Minako to choke back her tears as she fell to the ground, reverting to civilian form in a rush of orange lights and ribbons.

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When Darien awoke this morning, it was not to the sun streaming into his eyes or to an urgent tugging that meant Sailor Moon needed his help or even to his internal clock telling him it was time to awaken. No, instead it was to frantic pounding on his front door, getting louder by the second as he laid there wishing the it would disappear so he could go back to sleep.

With a groan, he slowly got up and went to answer the door, not caring if he was only wearing sweatpants and a pair of socks. It was too early and he was too tired to worry about priority. Luckily, when he opened the door, it was to a man only a few years older than himself, only wearing a pair of sleeping pants, a wife beater, and slippers himself.

"Neil?" the black-haired man asked sleepily, rubbing his eyes with a yawn. "What's the matter?"

"Darien!" exclaimed the other man in worry, the tone instantly awaking Darien and causing his attention to snap to the man in concern. "Have you seen my daughter? When I woke up this morning, she was nowhere to be found! I've looked everywhere and still can't find her!"

Neil Davis and his daughter had just moved in next door to Darien less than three months ago. His daughter, Rose, not even two years old yet, had to be the most rambunctious child Darien had ever come across. She had a habit for wanting adventure and disappearing without notice, much to her single father's dismay.

"You need to calm down, Neil." Darien tried to placate the frantic man as he began to pace in front of his doorway. "I'm sure she's wandering around here somewhere. We'll find her, don't worry."

Neil ran a frustrated hand through his short brown-black hair, not listening to Darien's attempts to talk to him. "She's just a toddler! Who knows what can happen to her without protection! She could f-fall down the _stairs_! Or, dear god, someone could have _taken_her! Oh no! My poor daughter! Kidnapped by some---!"

"Neil! Neil!" Darien tried to call the man but the 21 year old was too wound up in worry. The college student sighed, realizing that neither of them should just be standing around when the one and a half year old was still lost. He checked to make sure his door wasn't locked before closing it and grabbing Neil's upper arm.

"Look," he began as he practically dragged the other man, who continued with his worries, down the hall. "You have to keep calm all right, for Rose's sake. It will not do her any good to make up stories that will work you into a panic. Calming down will help you focus and find her faster, got it?"

It seemed to be just the thing needed to break through to Neil because he suddenly released all his breath in a shaky exhale and stopped his exclamations. "You're right, I shouldn't be working myself up like this. I'm sorry about all this Darien, I'm sure you have more important things to do---"

"Stop." Darien stated firmly as he finally let go of the other man's arm once he was sure he had completely stopped his hysteria. "I know we don't know each other every well or anything but that doesn't mean I'll leave you to look for your daughter all by yourself. Two heads, not to mention two sets of eyes, are better than one after all."

Neil smiled, turning his hazel eyes toward his neighbor thankfully as they began walking again. "Thank you. You are very kind, to both my daughter and myself. I was so lost when I came here. You have no idea how hard it was to adjust to living in Japan again after living in America for so long."

"I can imagine." Darien replied even as he strained his ears to listen for the missing child. He looked out of the corner of his eyes to see Neil doing the same. They were almost at the end of the hall now, where on one side was a door leading to the stairs and on the other was a set of elevator doors. "Have you asked the rest of the tenants on this floor?"

The hazel-eyed man looked up from where he was checking behind one of potted plants that dotted the hallway. "Yes. I've looked behind and in all these plants too, just in case you know? You were the last person I asked up here."

"Hmm." the blue-eyed man walked toward the elevator doors before calling the elevator up from the lobby. "I'll go ask down in the lobby to see if anyone's come across her then. You should check the stairs in case someone left the door open and she made her way down. That okay?"

"Sure." the man replied slowly, already opening the door that lead to the stairs. He knew what Darien really meant but didn't want to say: _'Check the stairs in case she somehow fell down.' _He winced at the thought as pain stabbed his chest, hoping his little girl hadn't fallen or hurt herself somehow. "I'll meet you down in the lobby after a few minutes."

The elevators chimed their arrival and opened, allowing Darien entry. He nodded to affirm the plan as the doors closed and he began his descent. It took only five minutes and two stops to reach the lobby. After asking the four people that had climbed onboard if they'd seen a brunette toddler roaming around and receiving negative responses, he made his way to the reception desk.

'_Hopefully they'll know something.' _he thought to himself, stifling another yawn in the process. _'Otherwise I'll ask the doorman too. He would know if someone walked out with Rose or if she's been down here today.'_

Just as Darien was about to reach the front desk, a giggle reached his ears. Usually he would ignore the sound, thinking it was just someone having a good laugh. This giggle was different though, very familiar and more importantly, made by a small child. He turned around, navy-blue eyes searching for the girl that made the sound. They light up in victory and relief as he spotted Rose playing with her teddy bear on the other side of the room.

He smirked slightly at the sight of the teddy bear as he walked over to the child. _'That poor bear. Being dragged and chewed on constantly. It's ear will have to be sewed up soon it looks like.'_

"Hey Rose. Where've you been, huh? " he said as he squatted down next to the girl. Startled, she looked up in fright before a wide smile spread across her face. She released her bear in favor of crawling toward Darien.

"Dare-Dare!" she laughed happily as she tried to crawl into the older man's lap. After a few unsuccessful attempts, her face scrunched up and began to turn red. Panicked at the prospect of tears, Darien lifted the child and quickly tickled her stomach. Like he'd hoped to happen, Rose instantly began laughing and forgot her sadness easily. He continued to tickled her for a few moments, surprised to find he was enjoying the action just as much as the youngster.

"That's much better, huh Rosie-Posie?" he laughed as he called her by his nickname for her. _'I've sure gotten used to her fast. Attached really.' _he thought to himself in amazement as he reached for the battered bear that was still lying on the ground. _'If I didn't know better, I'd say that I've known her since she was born. Same with Neil. Something about both of them is familiar.'_

Once he handed the bear back, Rose immediately latched onto it possessively. " 'eddy!" she exclaimed with a bright smile. With a shake of his head, Darien stood up, making sure Rose was securely attached to his hip.

"Well, Rose." he began as he walked toward the doors that lead to the stairs. He was positive that Neil would be bursting out of them any minute. _'No doubt in full fledge panic too.' _he thought wryly. _'I can't blame him though. If I had a daughter and she was lost like that I would be just as worried.'_

Unexpectedly Darien had a vision of a little dirty-blonde haired girl wearing a purple and pink dress, playing with a girl who looked like an older Rose. A woman was lovingly playing with the two, all three laughing happily. Looking up, he saw that most of the woman's face was obscured. All but the eyes, the exact same light blue eyes that the little girl had. "What in the world?" he muttered as the image left abruptly, leaving him feeling confused.

"Dare-Dare?" came a small voice then, causing Darien to look down at Rose. She was looking at him with her piercing green eyes, her head tilted in confusion and slight worry. _'She sure is attuned to emotions well.' _He couldn't help but think in surprise.

He smiled down at the confused toddler as he shook the strange vision out of his head for the time being. "Sorry Rosie-Posie. I was going to say we're going to see your daddy now. How's that sound?"

The brunette girl's smile widened even farther, if such a thing was possible. With a happy shake of her torn teddy bear, she exclaimed "Daddy!" for the whole lobby to hear. Darien paid no mind to all those that turned at the exclamation, he simply laughed down at the girl with a nod and hiked her up higher on his hip.

As he opened the stair doors, he missed the pair of incredulous forest green eyes that were following his figure. _'I did not just hear that.' _Makoto thought to herself as she watched Darien and the little girl disappeared behind the closing door. She shook her head in bafflement as she looked from the door to where Darien and the toddler were, back to the door again.

Sure, she'd seen the girl and the man as she'd come out of the elevator but she hadn't expected the man to be _Darien _of all people. She had stopped to watch the cute scene they had made, thinking that the kid must of escaped from her father by his state of undress.

Makoto had expected him to yell at the child once he got to her but instead he'd breathed a sigh of relief and squatted down to talk to her. She'd smiled as the man tickled his daughter and them goof around for a bit before he'd stood up, no doubt taking her back home. It was when she got a good look at his face when her eyes had enlarged and her mouth had dropped open in shock.

She had blinked a few times, not believing what she saw. A bare-chested Darien looking down at the little pajama-clad girl on his hip, talking to her quietly as they walked across the lobby. The little girl in turn was happily shaking a battered bear and looking up at Darien adoringly. It was the perfect picture of a doting father and his equally doting daughter.

Her mind had raced a mile a minute as her eyes followed the duo, thinking that maybe she had been wrong, that the toddler _wasn't _Darien's daughter. Her mouth had dropped even lower when the girl suddenly exclaimed "Daddy!" She saw Darien's expression, a little laugh and nod; not correcting her in the slightest.

'_He would have shook his head or said something though, right? If she was wrong?'_ The teenager thought as she hiked her backpack higher on her shoulder, looking toward the closed door once again. She shook her head in wonderment, heading toward the exit. _'I'll think about this later. I gotta leave now or I'll be late. Ami will probably have kittens as it is.'_

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"Are you sure he'll be here?" Jadeite grumbled for what had to be the tenth time. The Far-Eastern general was slumped over the counter, idly tapping his fingers. During the thirty-five minutes that the generals had been here, neither had said one word to one another, instead expressing their annoyance to Motoki. At least Jadeite was.

Motoki rolled his eyes, trying not to let the man annoy him. It was hard to do though when every time he thought Jadeite was going to be quiet, he blurted out the same question. "I am positive. Darien is probably just running late."

Zoisite sighed in aggravation and turned toward Jadeite for the first time since arriving. "Jadeite, would you stop it? You need to be patient. It's not as if Darien _knows _he's meeting us."

The auburn-haired general's eyes narrowed at Zoisite's condescending tone. "Well,_excuse _me. I had assumed he was. It seems someone failed to inform me of everything."

"I would have, if a _certain _someone---forget it. I refuse to partake in your childish actions again." Zoisite turned away from Jadeite, marveling at why he had even bothered with the man today. _'I shouldn't have bothered to tell him that I planned to met with Darien today. It would have been better off with just me.'_

Motoki winced, filling the tension rise even higher between the two generals. _'And I thought when they arrived was the worst of the storm. I wonder what happened between the two of them? I guess I could always ask.' _he grimaced at the thought instantly, deciding that he probably shouldn't get involved knowing what he remembered of the two of them.

The arcade worked looked outside to distract himself from the two men in front of him._'I'm glad all that rain finally stopped. It seems that winter is going to be early this time around though. It was freezing when I came to work this morning.'_ He broke off his train of thought as Darien arrived through the arcade doors, bringing in a cold blast of air from outside. _'Thank god!'_

"Darien!" he exclaimed in relief, drawing both the generals' attention. From the corner of the eye, he watched as both men released almost simultaneous sighs of relief at the name; knowing that they'd be able to get away from each other soon.

Darien hurried over to the counter at Motoki's call, glancing at the clock as he did so. _'7:44. Not as late as I thought I would be. At least I'll have a chance to go over those notes and get a cup of coffee before heading to school.' _He sat on the stool next to Zoisite, not even paying attention to either general.

The arcade worker smiled at Darien broadly, already reaching for the coffee pot on the counter behind him. "Hey Dare, I almost thought you wouldn't make it. It's not like you to arrive late."

Darien smiled slightly at the memory of this morning while he tugged of his side pack and placed it on the counter beside him. "Yeah, I stopped to help my neighbor. I think I told you about him?" At Motoki's negative shake of his head, he elaborated. "My neighbor, Neil, moved in not long ago with his daughter. She went missing this morning and I helped track her down."

"You found her then?" Motoki asked with a concerned frown, placing a mug of coffee in front of Darien. The black-haired man gripped the coffee mug, thankful for its warm.

He blew on top of the coffee before answering. "Yeah, I found her in the lobby. My bet is that she wandered into the elevator somehow and made her way down. Neil was ready to call the police by the time I reached him."

"How old is she?" prompted the blonde. He glanced at the generals, seeing them watching Darien drink his coffee with barely suppressed glee. _'I'm guessing all doubts of him not being Endymion are erased.'_ He thought, suppressing a smile of his own. _'I could have told them he was. In fact, I did. On more than one occasion too.'_

"She's about a year and a half. She's going through that adventurous stage. It's not the first time she's disappeared like that. It probably wouldn't be the last either unfortunately."

Motoki's eyes widened at the soft tone, something he wasn't used to hearing from Darien. "You sure are talking fondly about this little girl, Darien."

Darien rose an eyebrow at the random comment but shrugged nonetheless. "I guess. I've watched her once or twice when Neil had to go somewhere in a rush. She's a cute kid." Motoki nodded at the answer, wondering to himself why he had pointed that fact out. _'It feels like there's something there at the back of my mind but that could be my imagination. Its more than likely because I didn't expect Darien to have a soft spot for a little kid.'_

"So, Darien…" Motoki drawled out as he chased away his other thoughts. "I do believe we had an agreement." He chuckled at the scowl that planted itself on his companion's face. "You promised, remember? You get those notes so long as I think you don't need to go to the hospital."

Darien rolled his eyes even as he presented the palms of his hands to Motoki. "Here, see for yourself." He didn't bother looking down at his hands himself. He knew that they were practically healed, only some redness and smaller cuts left as evidence of the coffee incident. _'It's strange that they healed so fast though, it hasn't even been a day yet. If I didn't know better I'd say my healing powers have advanced.'_

"Wow." murmured Motoki under his breath, taken back at the sight. He'd been told to look for a man with extraordinary healing abilities by the Commander when he first began his search for Endymion, but this was the first time he'd ever witnessed them on Darien. _'I wonder if Darien has always been able to heal like this or its only a recent thing.'_

He looked up in awe, watching the generals lean over to get a look as well when they were sure Darien wasn't paying attention. He saw a smile finally appear on Jadeite's tight face, a lighter look coming to his eyes. Zoisite was just as happy, letting his shoulders drop in obvious relief and some shadows lifted from his own eyes. Both leaned back in their seats and nodded toward Motoki, signally they'd had a long enough look.

Motoki cleared his throat and dropped the hand, bringing Darien's attention back to himself. He let a smile break out on his face, a relieved chuckle forcing its way out. "Alright. I don't know how you did it," he saw a slight tightness form on the man's shoulders but didn't comment. "but I do believe you are healed."

The black-haired man shook his head, drawing back his hand and bringing it to his coffee mug again. He smiled at the man wryly, bringing the mug to his lips for another swallow. "So I can have those notes now, oh-mighty-one?"

Motoki laughed genuinely this time, reaching for the notes he'd placed underneath the counter for safekeeping. "I think I like the sound of that: Motoki the Mighty. Server of all those hungry and defeater of all video games in the land."

Darien chuckled as well, thankfully taking the notes from Motoki and skimming through them. He looked back up at the man with an amused smile. "I didn't know you had such dreams in life Motoki."

"Of course!" he exclaimed in mock surprise. Suddenly he leaned closer to Darien, forgetting all about the generals that were watching the exchange curiously. "Can I tell you a secret though? I actually hope to be a warrior prince one day. I'd help slay all those villainous monsters that the sailor senshi fight. You know, a little kick-ass action here and there and I'd be all set."

Both Darien and Motoki laughed at the blonde's comments. Motoki did somewhat hesitantly, just realizing that he'd actually had the boldness to say such a thing in public; with Generals Zoisite and Jadeite there no less. Who knows what trouble he might be in now. _'This is all so strange now that I remember more. I don't think I'll get used to the fact Darien is really the King or that I'm technically under the General's in the chain of command. I have to remember I can't go around saying stuff like that freely the way I used to.'_

Both generals choked at Motoki's comment of wanting to be a warrior prince, both for different reasons however. Zoisite because he thought Motoki was crazy for saying such a thing. _'What is he trying to prove?'_he asked himself, trying to keep from hitting the man upside the head. _'He just told Endymion what he is! We don't know what Endymion remembers, what if he just blew his cover? Endymion could be testing us for all we know. There's no way to be sure until we know more about him. Ugh!'_

Jadeite on the other hand was shocked for a completely different reason. _'The sailor senshi! Does that mean _**all **_the girls are here and fighting those monsters -Beryl's youma? I know that Zoisite said he saw Bellona, so is she fighting as well? And if so, why weren't we aware of all this? It's only going to make everything complicated.'_He cleared his throat, making a decision to make his presence known.

"Who are the sailor senshi, Motoki?" he questioned pleasantly, drawing curious looks from both Darien and Motoki and a murderous one from Zoisite._'I know Zoi wanted Motoki to introduce us but that'll take forever. It's time for the direct approach.'_

"You've never heard of the sailor senshi?" Darien asked the unknown man, his eyebrows raising

in surprise. _'I thought _everyone _had heard of them. They've -__**we've**__- been fighting youmas for a while now.'_

Jadeite chuckled nervously under the man's stare, suddenly overcome by the fact that this man was his _King_; one of his best friends at that. That knowledge didn't make him less tense though, he had no idea of how to act to this new-age Endymion; he knew next to nothing about him._'No use being nervous around him now, idiot! Not after looking for him after all these years. He's Endymion someone in there remember!'_ he chastened himself.

"I have heard of them but only in passing. There are no such things in Australia." he said after a moment, snorting internally. _'The only reason youmas aren't there is because there's nothing there __**for**__them. By now Beryl has felt all the power emitting from Japan and sent everyone here.'_

Motoki took control of the situation then, not wanting everything to fall apart before his eyes. "Uh, Darien. These are my new friends, Jamison Lynton," he nodded toward the auburn-haired man before gesturing toward Zoisite. "And my other new friend, Zander Wynne. They're both exchange students this year; Jamison from Australia and Zander from England."

Darien greeted them and introduced himself before taking a long sip of his coffee._'Greeted them much nicer then I expected too. Even welcomed them to Japan.'_ Motoki thought in amazement. _'Something's changed, I can feel it. Is he becoming more like Endymion or is it something else though?'_

"How did you met Motoki?" Darien inquired, mentally asking why he felt at ease with both of them. He guessed it was because they felt so familiar to him._'It was like this with Motoki when I first met him too. I was oddly at ease. Considering I know nothing about them, it's a surprise to be so open around them.' _

Jadeite panicked at his King's innocent question. _'What do I say!? Zoi never told me how we were supposed to have met Motoki as civilians!'_Fortunately Zoisite answered Darien without an ounce of hesitation. "We met him in Advanced Trigonometry at the beginning of the semester."

Jadeite laughed, picking up the lie easily even if it wasn't what _he _would have said. _'Advanced Trigonometry!? What is Zoisite thinking! I'm lucky to have passed what math I took!'_ "Yes. He took pity on us and volunteered to show us around the campus."

"That was kind of you, Motoki." Darien supplied, draining the last of his coffee. His eyes wandered to the time, making sure he won't be late. _'Hmm…8:10. Class starts at 8:45 today so I can leave about 8:30 or so.'_

"It was the least I could do. Now, to answer Jamiston's question, the sailor senshi are five girls who have been battling against monsters from who-knows-where for the past year or so. That's all anyone knows of them." he shrugged, playing the part of naïve arcade worker.

Zoisite blinked at the answer, unsure if he'd heard right. "You said _five_?"

"Yes." nodded Darien as he rummaged through the notes. "Sailor Moon, Sailor Mercury, Sailor Jupiter, Sailor Venus," he paused before forcing the next name out of his mouth, albeit bitterly. "And _Sailor Mars_."

Jadeite's heart skipped a beat at hearing Bellona had been fighting the youmas for so long and he'd never known. Then he frowned when he noticed the tone Endymion had used. _'What has she been up to that'd cause Endymion's bitterness?'_ He shared a glance with Zoisite, the other man noticing the tone as well. _'Perhaps Zoi was right. Is this Rei not really my Bellona?'_

"Who is Sailor Moon?" questioned the black-haired general. _'I don't recall a Sailor Moon. Is she an imposter perhaps? And why is Venus here as well? She made it clear she isn't on our side anymore.'_

Motoki laughed. "She's the most popular of the senshi, at least among the masses. She suddenly appeared fighting a youma one night and has been battling them ever since with the others joining her over time. She's clumsy, but people adore her."

"Clumsy?"

"Yes." Motoki nodded eagerly at Jadeite's question. "She's always saved by a mysterious man in a tuxedo. Just in the nick of time too. No one knows who he is because he disappears right after the battle."

"What does this Sailor Moon look like?" Zoisite asked, eager to learn anything about this strange senshi.

"I'm not really sure." frowned Motoki, scratching his head in thought. "We only know stuff from the news and papers after all. I got a glimpse of a fight once- _'more like watched in on it looking for Endymion'_- and saw she had long blonde hair, to the ground long. Has a somewhat small frame, blue eyes, innocent looking face from what I could see. That's all I know."

Zoisite immediately absorbed the man's information. _'Blue eyes and innocent face? Why does that remind me of someone? Someone who looks like Áine from the sounds of it. But it isn't her because she's here as herself. Which reminds me--'_ "How long has it been since Sailor Venus arrived?"

"Not long ago." commented Darien, replacing his notebook back in his side pack after he finished jotting down some pages numbers and placing Motoki's notes inside. "A month or so maybe. She was the last one to arrive."

"There've been some rumors saying she's Sailor V." piped up Motoki as he leaned against the counter and turned toward Zoisite. "I'm sure you've heard of her Zander. She suddenly disappeared from England a few months ago and then Sailor Venus showed up here."

"Yes." nodded the black-haired general. "That thought just crossed by mind as well. How strange things are here. Once Sailor V left England, most of those monsters did as well."

"It's almost like they're drawn here." chuckled Jadeite as he internally frowned_. 'It's all this power that's drawing them, drawing everyone from the Silver Millennium. I can feel all of it now that I'm concentrating on it. It's so thick I can almost taste it. But there's something wrong with Endy's power, it's like its being blocked somehow.'_

"Maybe they are drawn here." commented Darien with a shrug. "Its not like any of us know what's going on." _'I sure wish I did though. Something's happening with the senshi. I mean, why would one of them want Serena? And abuse her at that?'_

"Perhaps they feel a great battle approaching or they desire a great power around here." supplied a voice, making all four men start at the sound. They simultaneously looked up at voice, meeting dancing blue eyes. "You know, by doing that, you all seem incredibly similar. If I didn't know better, I'd say you were best friends and had been for ages too."

Darien raised an amused eyebrow, wondering how long she'd been listening. Zoisite ground his teeth together while he grabbed Jadiete's collar, preventing the man from jumping up and attacking the girl. Motoki groaned, resisting the urge to slap his forehead. "Minako, what a pleasant surprise."

"It is, isn't it?" she chirped with a smile at her brother. She turned toward Zoisite and Jadeite, allowing her smile to widen. "I do believe I've seen you two before. We've met, yes?" she feigned ignorance, tapping her chin thoughtfully.

Motoki did slap his head then, it being the only way to keep himself from hitting his sister for her stupidity. _'She really shouldn't test them like that. Who knows who long Zoisite will be willing to hold Jadeite back. Or hold _**himself **_back for that matter.'_ "So, Minako. What brings you here?" he ground out, a pleasant smile on his face.

The golden-haired woman blinked innocently at her brother. "I just came to see if Serena was here. Have you seen her recently?" She didn't miss the way Darien's shoulders tensed out of the corner of her eye or the way he studied her more carefully all of a sudden. _'Hmmm. Just what do you know Endymion?'_

"Only yesterday. I saw her on her way to school through the window." supplied Motoki with a shrug. "Besides, she should be at school by now. She wouldn't be hanging around here."

Darien practically glared at Minako in thought. _'Would she know Rei's secret as well? And if she did, would she know why that blasted girl did what she did to Odango?_' a sudden thought caused his glare to deepen, boring into the girl fiercely. _'No. She wouldn't help. Or would she? Now that I think about it, I saw her even less then I saw Rei during the time Odango was gone.'_

"Is there something wrong Darien?" Jadeite inquired, catching sight of the man's fierce glare. He gave Zoisite a look, making the other let go of his collar finally. _'Does Endy remember what Áine did?_' he thought excitedly, trying to pass his excitement onto Zoisite with a smile. _'After all, that'd be one less thing to have him remember and understand. Which means one step closer to Bellona.'_

"Hmm?" Darien snapped out of his thoughts, blinking at the auburn-haired man. "Oh, no. Just thinking."

"What about you, Darien? Have you seen Serena today?" Minako was curious about what the man knew and why he'd act that way toward her when they'd hardly said two words to one another.

"No." the answer was too quick but Darien didn't care. He refused to tell her that he knew exactly where Serena was. _'After everything she's been through she deserves a day in bed; to rest and just be by herself. Besides I could tell she was in pain by the time we got to her house. My sparks may have helped heal her but it'll be a while before the lingering pain and wounds are gone. Not to mention the emotional pain.'_

"Too bad." sighed Minako melodramatically. "I guess I'll have to catch up with her later."

"I guess." muttered Darien, wishing he had another cup of coffee to distract himself with. He glanced toward the exchange students, unnerved when he saw their studying looks directed at him. _'A strange pair of men. No stranger than me though. Mysterious stranger, that's for sure. Glad they never asked about Tuxedo Mask.'_

"Don't you have somewhere to be, Minako?" Motoki asked, not caring how rude he sounded. He just knew that Áine needed to get out of their presence fast.

The blue-eyed woman turned back toward her brother, her observation of Darien over for the time being. _'He knows what happened to Serena. I don't know how or what exactly he knows. But he knows nonetheless. Just great.'_ "Now that you mention it, I'm have to met up with a friend." she paused, smiling at the generals. "She's more like my boss really and I sure don't want to be late for that meeting."

Zoisite's eyes widened before narrowing at the woman's audacity. _'Two can play this game, Áine. Remember that.' _"Yes. I'm sure that you won't want to be late Miss…Minako was it? I have my own meeting with my boss not long from now myself. I understand the seriousness of such conversations."

Minako's eyes twinkled in merriment as she fully turned her back to Darien and her brother, both watching the situation carefully. Darien because he wanted to see if Minako would slip anything up and Motoki because he wanted to know what kind of dangerous game his misguided sister was playing.

"Now I remember where I've met you before!" she exclaimed happily, giving a giggle for effect. "I used to work for your boss. I just talked to him not long ago as a matter of fact."

Both general's faces drained of color, stunned at the news. They hadn't even known Áine to be in Tokyo until this conversation today and now they learn the Commander had been in contact with her and he hadn't bothered to tell them. _'Just what else is he keeping from us?'_

Minakos' smile turned victorious as she stared at the stunned men. "Be sure to tell Arty I said hi, alright? I'm sure he'd _love _to learn we'd met again." she turned back toward the silent men. "I hope you have a good day. Darien, Motoki see you both later."

She didn't bother waiting for their farewells, doubting that they had any. _'That'll give them all something to think about for a while.'_ she smirked, before it dropped off her face as quickly as it'd come._'What am I going to do with Endymion's knowledge though? How does he know? I guess I'll have to finally go to Rei and tell her that Serena's gone. She knows by now though, considering she hasn't stopped by my apartment.'_

All four men watched the young woman walk away in silence. Darien sat there uneasily, feeling a tension that hadn't been there before Minako arrived. His eyes jumped toward the clock eagerly. _'8:32. Time to go. Thank god.'_ "Well, I have to leave." he began as he practically jumped up from his stool. "I have to get to class early to talk to my physics professor about a lab I no doubt missed."

He slung his side pack over his shoulder, finally looking up to meet the still silent bunch of young men. "Well," he scratched his head for a second before holding out his other hand to the generals. "It was nice to meet both of you."

His words snapped Zoisite out of his enraged stupor and he elbowed Jadeite in the side. As the Far Eastern general released a shocked "Oomph!" Zoisite stood up himself and shook Darien's hand with a smile. "Likewise, Darien. I hope to talk to you again soon."

"I agree." offered Jadeite, shaking his King's hand firmly as he rubbed his abused ribs with his free hand. _'One step closer to fixing everything.' _ He thought as his smile widened. "Definitely soon."

The raven-haired man smiled back and nodded his head toward Motoki in farewell as he turned to leave. "See you this afternoon, Motoki. I'll give you back your notes then."

"No rush!" came the shouted reply as the Sol Prince watched his friend's rapidly disappearing form before it disappeared out the doors. Motoki then looked toward the generals and watched as they gathered their belongings. "Leaving?"

Jadeite nodded as he slipped on his coat. "I think Zoisite and I need to talk some things over. We learned a lot in this meeting. It needs to be sorted out."

"Indeed." growled the green-eyed general as he jammed his fingers into his dark blue gloves. "Cancel our _study session _for this afternoon, Motoki. We'll get more information from you later. Right now I have to talk to a certain Commander."

Jadeite chuckled, enjoying Zoisite's anger. _'Nice to see him so riled up. Especially when its not pointed at me.'_ "I do believe you sister has caused quite a stir." he commented to the arcade worker as they watched Zoisite march away without a word, intent on heading back to the hotel immediately. "We certainly didn't expect to see her anywhere in Tokyo before today."

Motoki frowned, offering a shrug. "I had thought you both knew she was here. I informed Commander of her presence the day you arrived at Headquarters. As a matter of fact, I was who he was talking to when you came into his office demanding to leave immediately."

"And yet he didn't tell us. He also didn't tell us the rest of the senshi were here either; only Endymion. When Zoisite saw Bellona yesterday, it was the first time either of us had seen or heard of any of the girls being in Tokyo."

"Jadeite." Motoki murmured, not bothering with any titles. This was a conversation between acquaintances, _friends _now; not soldier and general. "There's something wrong with Bellona. Rei---she's not the same."

Jadeite sighed, watching the wind blow things outside without really seeing it. When he turned toward Motoki, his eyes were sad and hazy with old pain. "If you think so too, I guess I owe Zoisite an apology. We fought -_literally_- over this last night. He claimed this Rei was Bellona, but not at the same time. I fought back and he revealed something I don't think I'm ready to know yet."

"I know she's important to you, Jadeite. But you have to know that Rei can't be Bellona. But… I think she's a danger to the King nonetheless. To_everyone_." came the solemn reply. He suddenly clasped the other man's shoulder firmly. "And besides, you'll agree that something's wrong with her once you see her too."

At Jadeite's disbelieving look and raised eyebrows, Motoki grinned broadly. "She's_fawning _over _Endymion_. Has been unabashedly since the moment she met him. Now tell me there's something not wrong with her."

The former blonde chuckled, letting his shoulders relax. This was the real Sol Prince finally shining through. "Are you sure you're thinking of the same Endymion I am?"

"If you've determined that Darien Shields is our king -which I know he is without a doubt by the way- then I am thinking of the same one." his eyes twinkled happily. "And, if my limited memory serves me correct, he is also the same Endymion that helped me stop one of the many fires Bellona set to your trousers."

Jadeite burst out laughing then, giving the startled man an affectionate thump on the back. "It sure is good to have you back Cadreyn! Now I don't have to worry about talking to a frightened mouse!"

Motoki grinned back, thumping the general on the back harder. "It sure is good to be back. And since you feel that way, I'll be happy to ignore any order you give me from now one."

Jadeite shook his head with an amused smile. "I don't think that'll work, old friend. Your still just a soldier compared to a general. You have to take orders from me."

Motoki rubbed the back of his head with a sigh. "It was worth a shot. Don't expect be to act uptight all the time anymore though. I almost gave myself a heart attack thinking I was in trouble for telling Darien I wanted to be a warrior prince. I can't act like a foot soldier all the time anymore now that I remember who I am and who you are."

"I didn't expect you to act like that anymore personally." the auburn-haired man explained. "It will be good to bring life back into the system. Zoisite's pretty much turned into Kunzite due to the stress."

The arcade worker prince blanched. "Then I'm really lucky that I didn't get in trouble, huh? I mean, what little I remember of Kunzite is that he was stern for rules and protocol. He refused to even address Endymion by his name. He only ever called him my Prince, my King, my Lord and so on."

"Yeah, Zoi's not quite at that level though. You're thinking of Kunzite before he began to lighten up in the last few months before the Fall. That's one thing your sister did right." he said lightly. "She may have turned bad in the end but it was obvious how much she cared for everyone, Kunzite especially. She showed him that duty wasn't all there was in life."

"Hmm." Motoki mumbled as he recalled Bellona's words before he died. _'She's betrayed us to protect. But who exactly was she protecting? Serenity no doubt, but who else? And from what?'_

"Don't worry about Zoisite though. I'm sure he'll be happy to see the real you back too, eventually." finally piped up Jadeite. "Now that Endymion's been found, he should turn into his fun loving self. Otherwise we may kill each other."

Motoki smirked. "I'm guessing that fight you mentioned caused that bruise I see on your chin?"

The general scowled, rubbing his chin. "I was concerned about Bellona all right? You know how unreasonable she makes me."

"Indeed. How many times did she tell you off when you first began courting her? Yet you still kept coming back, even at the risk of your health." he teased, laughing lightly. "Sometimes I wondered if you were desperate or just plain idiotic. Of course there was always the suicidal option."

The blue-eyed man growled, feeling the kick to his poor ego. "Shouldn't you be working? I, as you superior, order you to continue your civilian job,_now_!"

Motoki sniffed haughty as he stopped laughing. "I shouldn't have to take order from you. I am a _Prince _after all." He brushed off his white apron with flourish and turned on his heel. "Now if you excuse me, Lord Jadeite, I have many royal duties to attend to. First and foremost, finding someone to clean the royal dishes."

Jadeite roared with laughter, easily forgetting his poor abused pride. He watched the man marching into the back haughty, adding an extra swagger in his steps._'It sure is good to have you back Cadreyn. For a while there, I thought we'd never see the real you anymore. Our real friend.'_

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hours later, after she had informed an unhappy Rei of Serena's disappearance, Sailor Venus appeared in a cold room silently, an orange glow the only hint of the magic she used to appear. Instantly she was in a kneeling position, prepared to pay respects to the woman before her. When there was no immediate response, she knew that her _boss _was not yet aware, once more rejuvenating herself and her powers.

Thankful for the chance, the golden-haired warrior let her eyes roam around the room, looking for a number of specific items. She didn't need to truly look for them however, since their locations had long since been memorized and ingrained into her very being. It was almost second nature now to check up on them every summoning.

The first she knew it like the back of her hand, after all it belonged to herself. On top of a pedestal, floating by some unseen magic, was a gemstone of almost transparent topaz. It was a radiant yellow-orange, glowing with its own internal light. She winced as if in physical pain when she noticed that it was a darker orange that the last time she had set her eyes on it. She forcibly moved her eyes away, not allowing herself to dwell on the meaning of the darker gem.

Her eyes came to rest on the next pedestal, this one holding a brilliant ruby. Her eyes saddened in memory and despair as she studied its jagged edges, having long ago when shattered into two separate halves. Fortunately, there was only one half of the precious stone; the other never having been recovered. Of course, that didn't soften the blow when she saw that the remaining gem was the deepest scarlet, almost black in color. _'She's almost completely lost now. I do not know what can help the poison she's indulged in.'_

The woman's cornflower blue-eyes rested on the next two gems in relief, noting that they still shone with a brilliant light. A sapphire and emerald stood side by side in their respective pedestals, both whole and looking perfect. What caused a slight smile cross her face though, was the lightning that cracked around the emerald, protecting it from being harmed. Equally, the sapphire had a pure ice domed over it, teasing all that stood to harm it with a glimpse of the stone before it closed into an impenetrable, un-meltable shield. _'They both have much faith. They will need all the can so they won't be tempted to dwell down the darker path.'_

Her eyes suddenly darted across the room, taking in the sight of four other pedestals. The first three were unlike the others, they didn't glow for they held no gemstones to display. Indeed, Beryl was already in control of those, there was no way her boss could possibly dream of possessing them now.

The last of the four however, caused Venus to frown in worry. It was a small gem of kunzite, its owner adopting its name long ago. It looked the perfect shade of carnation pink, a color Kunzite himself said _"put all other shades of this color to shame, for mine is the color of honor and pride"._ The senshi smiled at the memory, she knew he had said that statement -something that never sounded right coming from the straight-laced general- just to prove the _girly _color had no ill effect on him. _'Oh, Kunzite. If only your gem could make its way back to you. You don't know that she holds the power to crush all that you hold dear.'_

She closed her eyes sadly, pushing back all her feelings. _'Now is not the time to reminisce for things I cannot help. I will do as I promised myself.'_ She smirked slightly as she opened her eyes to the last pedestals. They were the most important of all, and she couldn't help but be relieved that they had been empty for as long as they'd been erected. _'Everything will be fine as long as these remain empty. Otherwise there is no hope left.'_

"Venus. It is a pleasure to see you once more."

The golden-haired woman started at the sound, snapping out of her thoughts while simultaneously turning toward the voice. She could not make out anyone in the darkness but nonetheless knew that they were there watching her every moment. _'Surely my appraisal was seen and studied as well. That may cause a problem if I do not remedy the situation..'_

"Yes, your Excellency. I return the sentiments wholeheartedly." She replied evenly, staring at the ground to hide any emotions that could fly across her face before she could stop them. _'Now is one time I wish I wasn't half Solarian. We never can hide our emotions fully, they are always so powerful.'_

"Venus." the voice was sharp, an unmistakable edge to it that caused Venus's back to stiffen in worry. Whatever was coming next wasn't going to be good news; especially for her. As the orange-outfitted girl listened to the woman's voice, she was never more thankful for her habit and foresight to stare at the ground. She was positive that her shock and disbelief was spread across her face, her eyes wide with the revelation.

"How is it that the pathetic Prince of Terra and his equally pathetic wife, Serenity, have managed to break the seals I placed on them? If I remember correctly, you swore to me that that would never come to pass."

The accusation hung in the air heavily, bringing a whirlwind of emotions and thoughts crashing down onto the golden-senshi's shoulders. The only thing clear to the woman at the moment was how she wished she'd seen the attack coming at her sooner. Maybe then she would have done something besides stare at it in horror before it made impact, rendering her unconscious.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Done: 2/7/08 11:55 Posted: 2/8/08 12:20ish

So… whatcha think? The last scene reveals a lot I think, if you look at it in the right angle at least. By the way, when Kunzite says he knows why Minako betrayed the SM, he was only told that **Minako was protecting Serenity**, that's all. Oh and for clarification reasons, yes**Kunzite is 100 lunarian, **born on Lunaria and all.

Rose was so cute! And you can guess who Neil really is and who her mother is. But why is she born now. Hmmm…

Snit bit: Only one character (alt. identities included) out of all those revealed so far wasn't mentioned in this chapter. Who was it? (The first person to guess correctly might get a sneak peak of the next chapter given they leave an email address/username to send it to) Gives more incentive to read everything huh?

Until Next time Tiger Celeste out!


	17. Chapter 17

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

So… sorry about the incredibly long wait. Life gets in the way as many of you well know. I could always list the reasons why I never posted this chapter and all the relays I've faced but I don't want to bore you will the details. Oh, but while I was internet-less I **rewrote chapter 1 in third person** and tried to make it better. Please check that out and tell me if it does flow better with the story now. Thanks!

On another note this chapter itself was the _**hardest **_thing to post after I read it. I literally began crying so if any of you do as well, I'm with you! I seriously was like "…. oh my god! I'm an awful person!" then I began crying after checking it over. It's a sad, sad thing.

Now onto the story! And while you review please don't threaten me all that much. I do expect so threatening though, so….

Warning: Please have tissues at hand, they will be needed during the last scene for the faint of heart.

* * *

A black tail whished back and forth as Luna stared at the object in front of her with gleaming eyes. There had to be some way to optimize the device, to bend it to her whims. She knew that it held power; it had to so it could perform its duty. But what else could Serena's transformation broach do?

It had been a stroke of luck that it had been brought back to her notice. It had begun when she and Rei had been discussing how they should deal with Minako's lack of responsibility regarding Serena, and what they should tell her about the Dark Kingdom general that had retrieved the betrayer. Before they could make a decision though, Minako herself had ended up interrupting their quiet conversation in Rei's bedroom. Without hesitation, she cut off their protests and told them that Serena had escaped a few days ago.

* * *

--Flashback--

"_I assure you that I have been looking for her for days." Minako informed them, wincing slightly at their murderous expressions._

"_Really?" drawled Luna, jumping down from Rei's bed to stalk toward the golden-haired woman that sat on one of Rei's pillows. She stopped before the woman, glaring. "Then where is she Minako?"_

"_I regret to say that I haven't found her." The woman replied evenly as she shifted her feet beneath her. "I just asked Motoki at the arcade if he had seen her though. He said she walked by the window yesterday."_

"_We know." smirked Rei as she sat crossed legged on her bed, fingers idly picking at her blanket. Her smile widened as she saw Minako's gaze snap to hers. _

"_Indeed." growled Luna, beginning to pace angrily. "Motoki already informed Rei yesterday. We were astounded to say the least. How is it that she managed to escape from you?"_

_Rei's eyes snapped from the blue-eyed woman to Luna, surprise swimming in the violet depths. _'So she's not going to tell her we took Serena? What about the general that took her then?' _"Luna?"_

_The cat cast her eyes to Rei in passing before looking back at her current interest. She scowled angrily. "Are you going to answer me?"_

_Minako stuttered uncertainly, before blanking her face. "I--…She must have broke out of her handcuffs I assume. It is the only way I can think of." She shrugged offhandedly for effect._

_Rei growled at the woman, knowing that that wasn't the case. __**She **__had tried to break those handcuffs one afternoon when she'd been with Serena; it was impossible. Of course, impossible for everyone __**but **__Minako who'd simply touched them and willed them away. "That can't be! Those cuffs were unbreakable!"_

_Blue eyes hardened before narrowing at the angered teenager. "How do you suppose she escaped then?"  
_

"_I'll damn well tell you how she escaped!" came the venomous reply. Rei paid no mind to the cat that had frantically jumped back up beside her and was clawing at her arm. _

"_Rei! Rei, don't tell her!" hissed Luna, frantically digging her claws into the priestess's arm when she didn't response. "Rei!"_

"_Luna and I arrived at your apartment that night Serena disappeared. You, in all your _civilian _glory I'd like to point out, were asleep on the couch! Serena was in the same room as always but was she tied up? No! And the only person who could deactivate or break those handcuffs is their maker--__**you**__! So put two and two together and you get Minako releasing Serena!"_

"_And what, pray tell, were you doing at my apartment so late at night?" questioned Minako, not at all affected by Rei's outburst or denying the accusations. _'I should have seen something like this coming. Especially with the way she's been behaving around everyone. Lost her faith in everyone it seems.'

"_What would we be doing?" sighed Luna, suddenly tired with the situation at hand. "We were going to inform you that we had made a safer place to hold Serena."_

"_And where is this safer place?"_

"_It's gone." Luna replied as she gestured toward where the once gleaming white doors were. "I willed it away. It's of no use now that Serena's back on the streets."_

"_Hmm." Minako mumbled, studying the area that Luna pointed to. She had felt something odd when coming into the room but had passed it off as her imagination. Now she knew better, it had been ancient magic. "So what now?"_

"_We'll let things play out at the next youma attack. Surely Serena--"_

"_She won't be there." cut off Minako, ignoring the burgundy-eyed glare aimed at her. Luna would just have to wait. "She won't know when the next attack will be. Or any others after that."_

"_Why not?" demanded Rei angrily. They had been making progress finally, she didn't want to waste another second when Serena was still out there unpunished for her treacherous crimes._

_Minako sighed, reaching into her white coat pocket. Seconds later she was displaying a senshi communicator for her audience to see. "I have Serena's communicator. She won't know about an attack unless she's caught in the commotion or sees it on TV. In any case, I doubt she would know about it immediately."_

"_Why do you have that!?" snapped Luna fiercely as she studied the communicator. It was Serena's without a doubt, her signature pink color was a dead giveaway. Minako closed her eyes, dropping the communicator back into her pocket._

_She sighed then before opening her blue eyes to give them both a deadpanned look. "Maybe because you told me to confiscate all of Serena's belongings besides the clothes on her back?"_

"_That's right!" came the sudden exclamation as Rei jumped up off her bed and raced toward her dresser. After a few moments of searching through the top drawer, she grabbed something and turned back toward her curious companions. "I still have Serena's transformation broach. I got it from you last week, Minako."_

"_In any case." snarled Luna with a growl as she watched Rei come sit beside her on the bed again. "We will cross that path when we get there. Now, if you will excuse us Minako, Rei and I were in a very important conversation before you arrived…"_

_Minako looked to the ground as she began to stand up, hiding the rolling of her eyes. "Fine, I'll leave. See you around." She left the room quickly, not wanting to be in their presence longer than necessary. Only when Rei and Luna heard the closing of the front door did they turn back to one another. _

"_You didn't have to tell her that we took Serena. Now she assumes that Serena escaped from us." Luna stated calmly after a few minutes of tense silence. "After all, she never asked how Serena escaped. Why ask when you already think you know the answer?"_

_Rei grit her teeth at the cat, eyes narrowed in rage. "Well, you didn't have to claw my hand up." she seethed, displaying the ten claws marks between her right hand and arm. "Besides, you didn't __**have **__to back up my story. You could have jumped right in with the General information. Guess we hadn't informing Minako of that though…"_

_Luna glared at the girl silently, causing the raven-haired girl to frown before standing up from her bed. "Fine, be that way. I'll be washing up these wounds."_

--End Flashback--

* * *

After that _delightful _conversation, Luna hadn't wasted an second. Once she was sure Rei was in the bathroom down the hall, she'd grabbed the broach between her teeth and ran into the forest beside the temple, knowing the priestess wouldn't care in the least if she was gone.

It had almost been twenty minutes though and the guardian hadn't been able to figure out a way to utilize all the power that was no doubt waiting to be used. She had been hoping for a half-remembered ritual at the very least, like what had happened with the door, but nothing came to her. _'It did manage to help create the containment room without negative affect. There's no tell what else it could accomplish. I just have to figure out what it can do.' _

Luna stared down at the innocent pink and gold broach for a few more seconds before she picked it up between her teeth again and back-flipped. The item disappeared instantly, falling into her subspace pocket soundlessly. Looking around quickly, Luna searched the tree line to make sure Rei wasn't outside before dashing to the steps. More research would be no doubt be needed first though, before she could do anything.

* * *

Darien closed the door to his apartment tiredly, ready to fall asleep on his feet any minute. _'God, what a long day. I never should have volunteered for that extra credit assignment. Then again, I had to since Professor Akara wouldn't let me make-up that lab I missed. It was the only way to salvage my grade so close to finals.'_

With a tired yawn, Darien threw his jacket and side pack onto one of his chairs before letting himself fall into his couch in a large 'thump!'. He allowed himself the luxury of closing his eyes and relishing in the comfort of having to do nothing for a few minutes before the shrill ring of his phone echoed in the apartment.

In an uncharacteristic move, he buried his head further into the material underneath his head and attempted to block out the sound. The caller was insistent though, keeping with the call until a click sounded, ushering in Darien's voice mail.

"_Hello, you've reached the residence of Darien Shields. I'm not in right now so please leave your name, number, and message after the tone and I'll get back to you as soon as I can …"_

"Hello there, Darien!" exclaimed a jubilant voice, causing the dark-haired man to groan in response. "This is Arthur, you know, Mr. Lunvaire? I'm just checking to--"

"Mr. Lunvaire!" greeted Darien eagerly, breathing heavily as he had raced to the phone as soon as he recognized the caller. He paused to gather his breath and thoughts before continuing. "Sorry I…uh… just walked in the door."

Mr. Lunvaire laughed, the sound low and husky and Darien had the vision of the man shaking his head in mirth. "Sure you did my boy, sure you did."

Darien felt his cheeks burn, even though the man on the other side couldn't see his guilty expression. "I apologize, Mr. Lunvaire. It has been a long day, _week _really, and I--"

"No need to explain yourself. I ignore my own calls as much as I can!" interrupted the other man, never loosing his happy tone. "And what have I told you about calling me Mr. Lunvaire; it's Arthur to you."

"Yes, Arthur." Darien smiled despite himself, leaning against the kitchen wall behind him heavily. "Is there a reason you called?"

"Oh, just checking to see how things were with you and your studies and all that. No reason really…"

The college student frowned, noticing the slight change in the usually happy man's tone instantly. "I'm fine, Arthur and I'm still keeping up those grades like I promised you I would. But I think there's another reason you're calling and it isn't a very good one."

"I never could keep anything from you, Darien. Too observant for your own good." He sighed then, the sound tired and Darien could instantly tell that the older man was under a lot of stress. "The truth is that, well, I don't want to sugar coat this..."

"Go on, you can tell me. I'm sure I can handle it."

"That I know. You had to be a strong boy, Darien, to grow up the way you did and still prosper so well." Mr. Lunvaire lost himself in memory for a second before Darien's questioning voice brought him back. "Oh? I'm fine. As I was saying, I don't want to sugar coat this. The truth is I called about your inheritance."

Darien's breath seized in his throat. This wasn't a good sign. That money had been a godsend when Arthur showed up with it when he was thirteen and it was the only thing that had allowed him to escape that damned orphanage when he was 16. Now it was helping to pay for this apartment and other things, like half his college tuition. He didn't need a problem with that now.

"Darien? You still there?"

The 18-year old swallowed the lump down his throat. "Yes, I'm still here. Now, what's wrong with my inheritance?"

Arthur cleared his throat and the sound of shuffling papers sounded. Despite saying he didn't want to sugar coat the information, and knowing Darien could handle it, he himself knew it wasn't very good news to either Darien or himself. "Well, um.. you see…"

"Spit it out already." growled Darien, his hand clenching around the phone absently. All this hesitance of Arthur part was making him nervous and edgy.

"Where did all those nice manners go?" The man mumbled to himself irritably clearing his throat again. "Fine then. It's being looked into by the Board."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know if you remember this or not, but when I first found you to tell you of your inheritance, there were a bunch of people with me? Well, they were reviewing you."

"Why would they have to review me for my inheritance? Wait, they were the ones that caused me to not have access to it for those couple of years weren't they?" Darien frowned at the memory, shifting his position and leaning more of his weight on the wall behind him.

"Yes. Some believed that, given your past and the residence you were living in at the time--"

"Orphanage." The dark-haired man stated quietly. "You can say it, Arthur, you know that."

"Well, yes. The orphanage." Even over the phone, it was obvious to Darien that the other man was cringing at the word. _'He's always been so sensitive that he found me in an orphanage. It's not his fault I was put there, it was just the way things worked out.'_

"As I was going to say Darien, given that you were living at an orphanage, they thought you won't be able to handle being given access to that much money at once and so suddenly."

"So what you're saying is that this _Board _thought I would splurge and spend all my family's money because I finally had the opportunity to do so after not having anything most of my life?"

"In a nutshell, yes. They worried that you would be irresponsible. So they reviewed you and your character for a few years until they saw what I automatically had, you were a smart, level-headed young man who wouldn't take the money for granted."

"And why are they going to review me again _now_? I've been using that money without interference since I was, what, fifteen? That's been three years already."

"It's because they knew that you couldn't use the money without restraint until you were granted release from the orphanage. They were going to wait until you were twenty-one originally to allow you a few years of freedom but that changed when you tested for that advanced high school and allowed to attend there. The government granted early release at sixteen instead of the standard eighteen."

"So because I've been able to use the money freely earlier than they expected, and more than likely because I _was _a teenager when I was released out of the orphanage, they want to make sure I'm using my money wisely?" Darien gritted his teeth together. "What right to they have to dictate how I spend _my _family's money?"

Arthur winced at the younger man's harsh tone. "It's in your father's will. One of your father's old lawyers convinced him that if him _and _his wife passed on early there was no telling how you'd be raised or by who. You could have ended up being adopted by a rival or something and made to hate your mother and father."

"I don't understand." Darien's brows wrinkled as he stared at the wall blankly. "You told me that _you _were supposed to be my legal guardian if anything happened to my… " He winced hesitantly as he said the next word slowly. "_parents_. The only reason I was sent to the orphanage was because you were told there weren't any survivors of the crash."

"That's right and when I got word of a boy that had been orphaned about the time you had supposedly died and didn't remember who he was beside his first name, I took a chance. Of course by that time you were already thirteen but I knew that you were your parents' son without a doubt." Arthur nodded, as if he could sense Darien's slight smile over the phone.

"Then," Arthur continued on, frowning at the memories that assaulted him. "the damned Board decided to interfere and upset your guardianship, making me unable to adopt you properly. That's when _I _learned of that old clause; even your father had forgotten about it, it seems since he never told me to take it out after I was granted custody of you in case something happened. Thus they have almost every right to review you whenever they see fit."

"When are they coming to review me then?" growled out Darien as he tightened his hand around the black phone again. Sure he _accepted _the fact that this Board had a right to be here but that didn't mean he had to be _happy _about it. It was just another disruption that wasn't needed in his life. _'The sooner they get here, the sooner they can leave though, I have to remember that.'_

"They'll be in Tokyo in two or three weeks, arrangements are still being made between them all. But don't worry, I'm coming with them as well. Actually, I'll be there earlier so I can talk to you in person about this."

The blue-eyed man allowed some of the tension to release from his shoulders; it would be help that someone would be on _his _side and would know what to expect from the review. _'Now I wish I would have realized they'd been reviewing me when Arthur first began visiting the orphanage. I had thought they were observing everyone and the orphanage itself, not just observing __**me**__. After all they never talked with me once, even if I was preoccupied with Arthur and what he had told me about my parents.'_

"Darien, are you listening to me?" Arthur questioned, hoping Darien wasn't dwelling on thoughts of his deceased parents. He knew Darien well enough to know that the non-existent memories of his parents would always bother him and they _had _been talking about them for the past few minutes. Memories were sure to surface.

"Sorry, I zoned out for a minute there, Mr. Lunvaire. I mean, Arthur!" Darien corrected himself as he heard the 'tsk'ing sound the other man made with his tongue. "Sorry, force of habit."

The older man chuckled. "Oh well, it's a nice habit. I'm not called Mr. Lunvaire often enough by younger people if you ask me. They always call me 'old man' or 'hey, you!' a little too much."

Darien shook his head in amusement. "So, Arthur, when should I expect you to arrive? Would you like to stay here at my apartment?"

"No, no. I don't want to invade your home. I already have reservations at a hotel, so no need to worry. I should be there within the next week and a half or so. I have to make sure my affairs are in order and all but I'll be sure to phone you before I arrive."

"All right then, I'll be waiting. Should I do something to prepare for the review?"

"Hmm." the older man tapped his chin thoughtfully. "I don't think so. Just continue on with your normal life. School, hanging out, whatever it is you younger people do nowadays. Don't put yourself out for them just yet."

Darien ran a hand through his dark hair tiredly. Thoughts of sleeping were getting better and better. "Fine then. I'll see you soon I guess?"

"That's right, my boy! Don't worry about the review, they'll see that you are still the same smart, level-headed young man that you've always been. It'll be over before you know it and I doubt they will ever bother you again. Don't worry yourself, alright?"

"All right." sighed Darien, forcing a somewhat believable tone. "Bye."

"Good bye, Darien. I'll see you soon!" cheered the older man as he hung up the phone. The smile instantly dropped off his face as he swiveled around in his chair, facing his desk once more. He grimaced as he noticed an incoming video-call coming in on his monitor. He hurriedly shut off the screen before the caller could see him, knowing he wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone else.

He was instantly glad that he turned off the screen when the caller began speaking. "Commander! I know you're there, I can hear you breathing! We have some things to discuss; like why you damn well didn't tell me that Aine or the rest of the girls are here in Tokyo! And why Aine said she had been in _contact _with you not long ago. She says _'Hi Arty!' _by the way. And while you're at it, mind telling me how many times Cadreyn meet Endymion in the past because I surely don't remember--"

Artemis blanched before he quickly pulled plug for the communicator. He smiled in satisfaction as Zoisite's complaints gave way to silence. "Sorry Zoisite. I'm not ready to listen to you just yet." The man stood up in his chair then, stretching his muscles as he stood.

Artemis then quickly donned on his white jacket and buttoned it up all the way per regulation. After making sure his clothing was situated, he tied back his long white flowing hair with a black leather thong and made sure there were no loose strands.

His soldiers would have a fit if he wasn't per regulation, especially when he reprimanded them when they weren't. Being forced to run five miles isn't something he wanted to be pressured into doing. He could hear them now. _'Sir, we have to run five miles when we aren't per protocol. Isn't it only fair you do as well, sir?'_

Artemis rolled his eyes as he turned back toward the long silent video-monitor and smirked at the thought of Zoisite on the other side, no doubt fuming. "You can tell me anything, Zoi," he said to the black screen. "when I go visit Endymion in person. I'm sure you'll be happy to see me; just as happy as you no doubt were when you saw Aine."

Artemis chuckled to himself as he opened the door, walking to the training grounds. "And lets not forget as happy as you'll be when you learn I've known where Endymion's been for awhile."

* * *

'_It's nice that the rain stopped.' _Serena thought to herself absently as she stared at the light gray sky, a constant reminder of the storm beforehand. A stray thought crossed her mind, bringing an amused smile to her lips. _'I doubt the change in weather has anything to do with Darien and mine's talk. That's ridiculous.'_

The blonde girl rubbed her gloved hands together as she stood outside of her school's open gates, wondering if she was ready for what was just passed those innocent objects. True, she didn't have to face either Minako or Rei, but she _would _have to face Ami and Makoto. Even after two days of rest at home, she still felt nervous coming back and talking to them.

"I don't think I can face them yet." she whispered to the still air. It was early and practically no one was at school; no one besides janitors, teachers, and a few students that is. She knew that very few people wanted to show up at school at seven a.m., a whole hour before school actually began, herself usually included in that set of people.

Today though she needed what the early hours of school provided. A place of quiet and safety, where she could discuss things with Ami, who no doubt was somewhere on the campus. _'Always the bookworm.'_ she thought to herself with a faint smile.

She sucked in a deep breath of cold air, hoping to calm her racing heart. The blonde girl walked through the gates then, hoping that she was doing the right thing. "Here goes nothing I guess."

* * *

"I'm telling you that I saw Darien with _his daughter_!" insisted Makoto as she slammed her hands down on the table and leaned over the table toward Ami. She smiled sheepishly as her action upset the books around them.

The blunette sighed, putting down her book so she could look her friend in the eye. "Makoto, I'm positive that Darien doesn't have a daughter. Think about this rationally, _please_? He goes to college, practically lives at the arcade since he's there almost every time we are and _we _live at the arcade. He wouldn't have time to care for a daughter."

"I know what I saw, Ames. I watched them for goodness sakes!" protested Makoto as she idly flipped through the book in front of her. "The little girl yelled "_Daddy_!" and he nodded and smiled, that's not correcting her!"

The blue-eyed girl pushed her glasses higher up on her nose, exchanging her book with another that was lying beside her on the table. "You've been going on with this for two days, ever since you came in late with that bewildered look. The next time you see Darien, why don't you _ask _him if he has a daughter, Makoto?"

"Because I _know _he does!" retorted the brunette as she idly twirled the end of her ponytail with her fingers.

"Who does what?" asked a voice beside the two girls, causing them to look to where Serena stood a few feet away fiddling with her side pack strap nervously. "Hey guys…"

"Serena." whispered Ami in shock as she pulled off her reading glasses. She stood up hesitantly, wanting to go to the girl but afraid of how she would act. "Are y-you--where--?"

The blunette looked toward her companion helplessly, hoping Makoto could convey what she wanted to say. The green-eyed girl looked at Serena and let a friendly smile slip onto her face. "Long time no see girl, what have you been up to?"

Both girls instantly knew that it was the wrong thing to say when they spotted the tell-tell watering of Serena's eyes before she dropped her face to look at the ground. It was when Serena's bag dropped to the floor and her to quickly follow with a smothered sob that they jumped into action.

"Oh, Serena." murmured Ami as she kneeled on the ground and wrapped her arms around the blonde's shaking shoulders. "We're _so _sorry that this happened to you. We tried to stop it."

"Yeah, Sere." piped up Makoto somberly as she wrapped her arms around both the smaller girls and squeezed them comfortingly. "We tried to get you away from Rei, Minako, and Luna but it was already too late. You were gone."

"I--You--" wheezed out Serena after a few minutes, her tears still continuing but slower now. She took a deep breath before managing to ask her question. "You t-tried to _save _m_-_me?"

Ami pulled back in shock, disbelief swimming in her startled eyes. "Why are you so surprised, Serena? Of course we tried to save you!"

"Yeah, girl. You think we would really leave you like that? That's not what friends do to one another."

The blonde pulled away from Ami and Makoto and shrunk within herself, suddenly seeming smaller than she was. "You believed them though." she whispered into the quiet library. "I know you thought that I was a traitor in my own way. You've sided with them before, why aren't you now?"

The color drained out of Ami's face as her lips parted in shock. "We _never _thought you would betray anyone, Serena. We sided with them when they said you needed to stay away from Tuxedo Mask or needed to train more because we're _worried _about you."

"Yeah, Sere." spoke up Makoto somberly. "We like to think that Tuxie just wants to help us defeat the Dark Kingdom and protect the world but we don't _know _whose side he's _really _on or if he's suddenly gonna turn on you and attack you one day. We want you to be wary of him in case that _does _happen and train more to protect yourself from either him or a new general or even a super strong youma. You need to be better prepared to fight which ever, that's all."

"We couldn't --_can't_-- understand how Minako, Rei, or even Luna believe you had once betrayed us all and the Princess." Ami continued. "It's _impossible _to believe, Serena. You have to trust us on this. We knew that they were wrong to think such a thing and tried to stop them."

"It's true." frowned Makoto in concern as she cast a concerned glance at Ami. "We never really thought you could betray us like Minako told us you had. _You _were the one that willingly took Luna in and accepted who you were meant to be, _you _were the one that befriended us all when we came into your life, _you _were the one that wasn't intimidated by the rumors spread about me or Rei or even by the brain of Miss Genius over there and _you _were the one that eventually lead us to learn who and what we are. Why would you do all those unselfish and wonderful things if you were a betrayer?"

Serena looked up at them with her tear-stained face, hope shining in her eyes at their reassurances. Still, she had to be sure after everything that'd happened lately. "But Rei… s-she said that you believed I was a traitor too. That it was why you had stayed away from me and didn't interfere with their little scheme."

"That's not true." the blue-haired girl began gently as she took one of Serena's shaking hands into her own. "We truly believed you were in Kyoto until Minako told us at the last youma fight where you really were. I guess Rei told you all those lies shortly after Minako told us and we were still too shocked to do anything yet."

"So you never thought I turned my back on you and the princess in the Silver Millennium? Even after Minako told you about those dreams Luna had?" Serena whispered timidly. "Like the one where I left with the Dark Kingdom generals?"

"How could you have betrayed us Serena? Your too kind hearted to do that to anyone. They're all just mistaken, that's all." Ami murmured as she rubbed the blonde's back comfortingly. "Just a big mistake. For all we know, you could have gone with them to _save _us. Anything's possible."

"Yeah, or you might even have _pretended _to betray us." added Makoto thoughtfully. "To protect the Princess or something and that's what Luna's been dreaming about."

Serena was still unsure but smiled up at the two gratefully. At least she knew that they didn't consider her a traitor, at least not right now. They thought she was a friend, a good one at that. _'I just hope Rei doesn't find something else out and they lose their faith in me.'_ She wiped her blue eyes with the back of her sweater sleeve and sniffed a few times, trying to dispel her negative thoughts.

"Are you okay now, girl?" Makoto questioned hesitantly, her forest green eyes swirling with concern for the younger girl. "No more crying out puddles?"

Serena laughed, the sound wet with her leftover tears. "Yeah, I'm okay. I know I've cried out more than a dozen puddles during this last week or so. Any more crying and I might not have any tears left for my future klutz attacks."

The green-eyed girl smiled in relief, standing up with a chuckle. She glanced at Ami before offering a hand to both of her companions. "How about we get up and finish what we can before first period then, huh? It'll be much better than this sad party we're having now."

Serena took the hand offered and pulled herself up, her brow crinkled along the way. She glanced between the two in confusion, her head cocked slightly to the side. "Finish what?"

Makoto looked startled for a minute before casting her wide-eyed glance to Ami. "Ummm…"

"We were looking for you Serena." Ami said gently, moving back to her seat at the table covered with books. She gestured to them to move to the table with a nod of her head.

"_Me?_" came the squeak as Serena cast her eyes on the numerous books. There were piles of them, some old and falling apart while others where shiny with new covers. Some had titles in other languages while others were graced with shining stars and a variation of the moon.

"Well," amended Ami as she adjusted her glasses back onto her face once more. "We've been looking for Sailor Moon really."

"Yeah, anything that mentions any magical girls we've been looking into. Anything we've found so far has been in fairy tales or ancient myths. From a _long _time ago." Makoto continued as she showed a thick, dusty book to Serena. The covered was old, but still elegant with its etched oak tree and silver crescent moon hanging high in the sky.

"Why are you doing this?" Serena questioned as she rubbed her hands over the book softly. It was still soft to the touch, showing how well-handed it had been once upon a time. _'This book seems familiar. I wonder if I've read it before.'_

"To disprove Rei and the others' beliefs about you." came the preoccupied reply as Ami instantly began copying things down from one of the many books open in front of her. "After we learned you were no longer in Minako's apartment and couldn't find any trace of you, Makoto and I had a long talk about what to do. We figured that maybe we could find evidence to prove you weren't a traitor."

"And we just so happened to be in the city library at the time and one thing lead to another. The next thing we knew we were checking out all kinds of books." Makoto chuckled as she sat down in her seat and pulled one out from the smaller girl.

"Have you found anything yet?" Serena asked in curiosity as she looked down at the book she was still holding, absently sitting down in the seat offered. _'Ancient Myths of the Earth and Sky.'_

"Not about you specifically." Ami replied with a frown. "And even the things we have found have been obscure. For example, there were a few old poems that mention female warriors that watched down on Earth in one or two lines but that's all. I'm actually going to cross reference a lot of the poems tonight. See if that comes up with anything."

"May I help?" Serena murmured shyly, somewhat expecting them to deny her request. She looked up at Makoto in surprise as the brunette laid over the piles of books dramatically.

"Yes; thank goodness!" Makoto exclaimed as she gestured to a pile of books on her side of the table. "I was going crazy. I haven't read this many books at one time in my whole life! Three or four is absolutely tops for me but I've been reading, like, twenty! _Thank you!_"

Serena giggled, casting her eyes toward Ami who was also smiling. "Alright then, which books should I take home with me?" she grimaced as she looked at all the books once more. "And how many? I'm hoping not _too _many."

"Oh, I'd say you only need to take forty. That'll do it." Ami said thoughtfully, watching as Serena's mouth dropped open in shock and her face become pale. The blunette giggled after a few moments, unable to keep a serious expression any longer. "Don't worry Serena. I was just kidding, I promise."

The blonde teenager looked at them both warily, frowning suspiciously. "Are you serious? You're not going to suddenly pile me with a whole entire book shelf are you?"

"God, I hope not!" piped up Makoto as she observed the two with an amused smile. "Of course, it _would _take a load off my pile, not to mention save me from future back problems…" She adopted an earnest expression, smiling brightly. "I think that's just what I'll do! Serena, you're the new book carrier! Break time, Ames!"

Ami looked up at her nickname, closing yet another book. She eyed the brunette in dismay, shaking her head sadly. "What did I tell you about bartering off your books, Makoto? This is the second time since you came in this morning!"

Serena continued to let her giggles slip past her lips, knowing that this was something _normal _she could cling onto right now. Something that didn't involve angry accusations or venomous actions; it was a simple joke between good friends.

She shared an amused glance with Ami before looking at the pouting Makoto with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "Well, I guess your professional book-lifting days are over then. Such a shame too, you almost had that gold metal. Maybe you could start those cookbook weighing events I've heard about? That might help you achieve at least a blue ribbon."

Makoto erupted in laughter as she enveloped Serena into yet another tight hug. "God, I've missed you girl. It's so nice to hear that sense of humor of yours!"

Serena giggled as she threw her small arms over the brunnette and they pulled the laughing Ami into their group hug. The blonde gave each of them a bright smile before squeezing them tightly. "I've missed both of you guys too. So much."

* * *

Serena grunted under the weight of her book bag as she walked down the sidewalk. Makoto, Ami, and herself all decided that she should only take five books from the pile that crowded the table. Unfortunately for Serena, the five books that she picked were large, thick, leather-bound, and almost 600 pages each. _'And they sure feel like they weigh 600 pounds.' _

'_But'_, she amended herself. _'They all looked really interesting and that's why I ended up picking them. Compilations of ancient myths, poems, and all kinds of stories. I'm sure I'll be able to find something about the senshi in them. And, most importantly, prove I'm not a traitor to Rei and the others for sure.'_

"Hey Serena!"

The blonde looked up at name, surprised to discover she had made her way to the arcade. With a humorous smile at her unconscious movements, she made her way to the counter and ungracefully dropped down onto a stool before Motoki. Her side-pack fell to the floor with a large thump but she couldn't bring herself to straighten it out or see if anything had spilled out in the fall.

"Serena?" Motoki asked in concern, looking at the figure slumped over the counter in a mass of blonde hair. When all he received was a grunt in reply, he quickly turned around to the counter behind him. "Don't worry Serena, I'll have your triple-chocolate milkshake in a second."

"Thanks, Motoki." she murmured tiredly as she lifted her head up and placed it up on her chin. "I really need one today."

"So Serena, are you feeling alright now?" the arcade worker asked in concern as he looked over his shoulder briefly. "I heard about that sickness you got when you were taking care of your aunt and uncle. It must have been pretty bad for you to be gone for so long."

The blonde stiffened noticeably, thankful that Motoki couldn't see the panicked expression that was no doubt on her face, before releasing a shaking breath and relaxing her posture. "Y-yeah. I'm all right. Clean bill of health from my mom."

"You better be all right." growled a voice behind the blonde, causing her to spin around on her stool in surprise. "After all that food I bought you."

A quick retort formed on Serena's tongue before it died just as quickly as it'd come when she saw the tightly suppressed concern that was radiating out of Darien's eyes. He was worried but obviously didn't want to make a big deal out of it.

"What?" Darien asked quickly, seeing the soft expression on Serena's face. He took a few steps to the side and out of her line of sight cautiously. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Nothing, Darien. Just glad to know you care and all." Serena finally replied, smiling brightly as she turned back around.

"If I didn't care I won't have put up with the café the other night_." _he retorted as he took a seat next to the girl. "Hey Motoki, could you get me a coffee?"

"Sure thing, buddy." The arcade worked replied from where he stood still facing the other direction pretending to finish Serena's milkshake. As he reached for a mug his ears strained to listen to the rest of the duo's conversation.

"What was so bad about buying me a few pastries?" Serena asked indignantly as she raised an eyebrow at the older man beside her. "Or was it the hot chocolate?"

Darien gave the girl a deadpanned look and shook his head. "None of that was a problem Serena and you know it. The problem was that you let that old lady think I was a pervert. _And _you enjoyed letting her think that too."

Serena giggled helplessly at the memory. _'That dear old lady was so cute. I should visit again one day.'_ "It's not my fault you probably saw more of me than my mom has since the day I was born. Honestly, I think you deserved to be thought of as a pervert."

"I already told you that I don't even remember any of that! And since I can't remember you being naked, that means I can't be a pervert!" he replied with a frown. Suddenly feeling eyes at the back of his head, the dark-haired man looked around to see a few people had stared at his exclamation, including the shocked Motoki.

With a wince Darien realized he and Serena had been talking a little too loudly for this type of conversation. With a dark glare, despite the blush that was rapidly burning his face, he faced all the eavesdroppers and shooed them away. Satisfied they would mind their own business, at least for now, he leaned closer to Serena's level to talk.

"Fine then," he practically hissed to the amused girl. "the next time you're in _that _kind of situation, I won't help in any way. Happy now?" He tried to look angry but knew he hadn't succeeded when the girl rolled her eyes in exasperation.

"Look Darien," she whispered back, neither person realizing how Motoki had slowly moved closer to their side of the counter to continue listening. "I already told you how _extremely _thankful I am to you. You need to realize though that I don't plan for anything like that to happen again between me and Rei any time soon. Let alone ever again. It--it's not a situation I'd like to repeat to say the least."

'_Damn right it won't happen again.'_ the blue-eyed man thought to himself firmly as he watched the blonde's face drop at the memories the situation brought. _'Because I refuse to let it. Even if I have to physically remove Rei out of the same room, she's staying far away from you.'_

"Good." he replied out loud, content with his thoughts for now. "That way I won't have to see you dressed in less than you are now."

Serena's lips twitched as she glanced down at what she was wearing. A long sleeved while and blue sailor-style uniform top to match her long, blue, ankle-length pleat skirt; a pair of knee high white socks; and loafers. _'Definitely not half-naked. That's more like my senshi uniform.'_ "Good thing it's not summer then."

Darien laughed as he finally took note of what the blonde was wearing; her school was already wearing their winter uniform it seemed. "I guess it is."

A loud 'clack' brought the pair's attention to Motoki who was placing their drinks in front of them. The man in turn looked almost traumatized. "So…" he drawled as he watched the duo reach for their individual drinks with words of thanks. "Should I ask what that was all about? I mean, I thought I heard something about buying pastries and the next thing I knew you were talking about Serena being, well, not fully clothed."

Serena released an 'eep!' as her faced burned brightly. Teasing Darien about seeing her at least half-naked was one thing, especially knowing that he still squirmed because he knew he _did _sometime while bandaging her and just didn't remember. But talking about it in an arcade full of teenagers that would probably take their words the wrong way was a completely different story. _'Maybe I should have waited to tease Darien about this.'_

As Serena was thinking that it would have been _much _better to have waited to tease Darien, especially with all the incredulous looks that people were giving her, Darien answered the arcade worker's question. "Frankly Motoki, I don't think you should. It's between Odango and I only. "

Motoki gaped at the college student in disbelief before schooling his features into a thoughtful nod. "You're probably right. It's not the type of thing I'm sure I want to hear about."

Inside however, Motoki was mulling over the man's answer. _'Since when has Darien started to refuse to tell me anything like this? At least I know why he was so unsettled around Rei when Zoi and Jade were here. Rei did something to Serena and whatever it was, it was really bad and somehow Darien helped Serena… But how in the Seven's Hell did he see her naked and not remember?'_

The man's concentration was broken as he spotted his sister rushing down the street through the arcade workers. It was Aine no doubt, the familiar rushed pace she was taking, pushing startled pedestrians out of her way with a barely audible _"Sorry!" _echoing in her wake.

'_I've never seen her like this though. At least this time around.'_ Motoki thought to herself as he scratched his head in confusion. Her golden hair, usually tied back in that red ribbon of her's to perfection, was in complete disarray as it flew behind her. Her face was the epitome of determination, hard blue eyes focused solely on the path in front of her as her face showed the smallest amount of concern and guilt for those that she pushed out of her way.

"What in the world is she doing?" he questioned to no one in particular as he moved across the room to continue to watch where she was going. Nonetheless Motoki's question and his movements caught both Darien and Serena's attention.

Sharing a glance with one another, they turned to watch where the arcade worker was absently moving to. When they saw Minako running across the pavement through the window, sidestepping a startled old lady at the last minute, they moved to the window to look out too.

All three watched as the frantic Minako continued to jump past pedestrians before finally bowling over a middle-aged man. She simply jumped back up and continued to run without a look back. The man, on the other hand, stayed where he had fallen to the ground in an undignified sprawl that sent a briefcase, now unopened, to spill its contents of folders and other documents with him.

"_Sorry about that!" _was all that the dashing girl offered in return.

"Girl, pay attention to where the hell your going! I demand you tell me who your parents are so I can tell them of your unruly behavior!" the man called after her angrily, shaking a fist at the retreating form.

Motoki winced as the man's angry words echoed down the street with ease. _'Don't do anything rash, Aine!'_ He silently pleaded as he saw his sister stop dead in her tracks and backtrack to the man.

"Excuse me." Minako apologized sweetly as she bent down to help gather the scattered papers.

"I expect a better apology than that young lady!" the man blustered as he stood up. "And I still expect you to give me your parent's names! You shouldn't be running around in such a manner!"

Minako's face turned murderous as she shoved the gathered papers into the man's chest. He barely caught with a stumble that caused him to back up a few steps. "_Excuse me_," she repeated. "but I have every right to be _'running around in such a manner'."_ she smirked at the man's narrowed eyes, glad to see he enjoyed her falsetto mimicking.

"And why is that?" the man questioned snidely as he shoveled his papers into his briefcase, uncaring how they wrinkled in his anger. "Are you late for a nail appointment?"

The blue-eyed girl's face drained of color before it blossomed in a deep red. _"WHAT?"_

The man smirked in reply. "You heard me, little girl. You late for that all important nail appointment?"

"Why you insolent, _pig-headed simpleton_!" she practically screeched as she took an aiming swing at the man's head. The man barely managed to duck in his surprise. He hadn't honestly thought she'd take a _hit _at him.

"_Minako, stop it!" _

Motoki blanched as he saw his sister take a swing at the arrogant man before rushing out of the arcade like the Hounds of Hell were snapping at his ankles. He got to the girl just as she was about to take another swing, this one at the man's gut. He winced as she made contact, sending the groaning man back to the ground again. Sure the man deserved it, especially with how he was talking, but _still_.

"_Stop it!" _the blonde man repeated frantically as he finally seized Minako's arms and wound them around her back. As she continued to try to twist her arms out of his grasp, he placed more pressure on them until she swore in pain.

"Let me go, Caderyn!" she hissed angrily as she tried to head-butt the man blindly. "That pig deserves it for what he was saying!"

"I'm know he does." he answered, trying to stay calm. He chanced a glance at the man and winced when he saw the blood coming out of his split lip. He didn't seem to be moving very much either. _'Damn, when did she hit him there?'_

"So why the _hell _aren't you letting me hit him!?"

"Because I want to know why your acting like Makoto on a bad day!" Motoki growled as he dodged a back kick aimed a little _too _high. He tightened his grip on the woman's arm in warning. "Now, _stop _struggling."

Minako snorted but stopped struggling with a half-hearted sigh. "I've seen her act a lot worse than this."

Motoki chuckled as he released her gratefully, watching as she glared at him before focusing her fierce expression on the man. "I've seen her act a lot worse too. That's why I said _Makoto_."

Minako stopped rubbing her wrists with a startled sound in the back of her throat. She cast a wide-eyed stare at him. "How-- how much do you remember?"

"Not much more." he offered with a shrug. "The generals, they… Something they said triggered more of my memories involving them _and _you. And I can remember all my encounters with Bellona and Mars now."

"Then why do you remember--?"

"By remembering all my memories with Mars, I remember other encounters with the senshi involving her. Including Jupiter's fierce temper." Motoki replied, glancing around to make sure no one had been listening in on their conversation. Luckily everyone had been giving them a wide area, even Darien who was holding an arm out to keep Serena from rushing over.

"Oh." Minako replied before finally taking notice of Serena, who was still standing next to Darien uncertainly. At the sight of the girl, Minako tensed up as she realized she had completely forgotten the reason for her dash across town.

'_Stupid man getting in my way.'_ she growled to herself. She took a deep breath to calm her anger before turning toward her brother. "Look Caderyn, I have to go, _now_. Mind taking care of this for me?"

The arcade worker sighed tiredly. "No problem. I expected as much, knowing you and all. But I guess that's what family's for right?"

Minako smiled slightly. "It sure is. You have no idea how much I appreciate this." She gave the man another smile and took off in a dead run, once more dodging people and pushing others out of the way.

"Thank you Motoki, I'll pay you back one day! And that's for...uh…_distracting _me away from what that man deserved. I needed that!" her sheepish comment came a few seconds later, leaving Motoki to shake his head as he watched her fade away from sight.

He looked down at the still-unconscious man moments later and rolled his eyes skyward. He turned toward where Darien and Serena stood on the sidelines with a smile. "You mind helping me, Dare? Minako says she really has somewhere important to be."

The corners of Darien's mouth twitched as he dropped the arm that was blocking Serena's way. "Of course, that explains why she punched that man's light out."

"Even I think he deserved it." Motoki replied as he leaned down next to the man's head. "Obviously she was worried about something and he upset her worse with his words."

Serena glanced down the street and saw the numerous dazed looking people staring in the direction that the older woman had ran. She winced as she noticed about a third of them were on the ground or trying to gather things that had fallen. _'I wonder what's wrong with Minako.'_

"Hey Serena!"

The blonde snapped out of her thoughts to see Darien and Motoki carrying the man between them as they walked through the arcade doors. _'He's lucky he wasn't knocked down too far away from here, I guess.'_ She thought as she worried her bottom lip between her teeth. She wondered if they'd have to take the man to the hospital.

She chanced a glance at Darien, who was carrying the man's legs, looking at her expectantly. "What?"

"Can you get the man's briefcase and carry it in please." was all he managed to say before the doors that closed after his tall form. His last words carried to her ears as someone else walked out. "And get your head out of the clouds, Odango."

The blonde glared at the closed doors but gathered the man's briefcase and stray papers nonetheless. As she walked into the arcade the new television that Motoki had been talking about installing a few months ago over the counter, and had apparently installed recently, caught her attention.

It was the afternoon news, she was positive. After all no movie or television show could dream of something so horrible. People were lying everywhere -on the ground, grass, anywhere and everywhere they could lay, they were. What was worst was that all the people were unconscious and some were almost white in complexion.

The camera angle panned out then to show colorful, non-human, but human looking creatures-- '_youmas, tons of them!'_-- laughing as they chased the frightened humans before striking them down with arrays of attacks. '_Oh dear god. What is happening?'_ Serena thought to herself frantically as the briefcase fell out of her numb fingers.

As she absently moved closer to the counter she couldn't bring herself to look away from the television no matter how hard she tried. _'It's like a train wreak…I can't look away.'_

A reporter appeared before the camera, a visible line of blood running down his cheek. He was pale in complexion with mud, leaves, and what looked like black blood, sticking out of his hair and clothes. Serena had no doubt that the cameraman looked similar.

"_This is Tobin Hatsomo reporting live from Tokyo. Behind me you see what one can only describe as a battlefield. As many of you well know, for most of the past year a group of young women, called the Sailor Senshi, have been protecting Tokyo from creatures just like those you saw moments ago. This time though, it seems their never ending battle has proven to be too much. Behind me you can see…"_

The reporter's words fell on death ears as Serena watched in growing horror as he showed Sailor Jupiter, who's uniform was torn almost to immodesty and whose sporting numerous gashes and burns that stood out like tattoos on her pale skin, charging up one of her attacks only to be bombarded by two youmas simultaneously.

A burst of fire, no doubt from one of Sailor Mars's stray attacks, erupted on the screen then, blocking off Serena's anxious eyes. She gasped at what she managed to hear though the static next. It was a scream, far worse that anything she'd ever heard before, but it was the words that haunted her the most.

"_You bastards! If I'm going to die, you're sure as hell coming with me!"_

Tears gathered in Serena's eyes as she heard Jupiter's 'Divine Lightning Air Strike' attack begin to rain down its thunderous lightning. _'She's going to be caught in the storm. She's going to kill herself just to kill them. Oh god! Jupiter, Makoto! Don't do it, please! I'm begging you!'_

"_I call upon the Jovian storm! Heed my words as I seek your guidance!" _came Jupiter's eerily calm voice through the chaos that erupted. _"Destroy that which you may while you bring down your heavenly light!"_

She could hear the other senshi now and seconds later she was able to see the battle again. Sailor Mars was clearing screaming Jupiter's name over and over, trying to be heard over the battle. Sailor Mercury was busy firing out data filled with vital statistics and weak spots with choked sobs slurring her words. Sailor Venus, it seemed, had just arrived on the scene to see Jupiter swept up in her own storm.

In her denial, the orange-clad senshi was yelling at the other senshi, telling them to scan the area for the fallen warrior and get their composure back. _"Mercury, I want a full aerial scan, __**now**__! I expect the location of Jupiter as soon as possible! Mars, stop screaming and work on the youma due west! Jupiter's fine so quit your crying!"_

"_There's nothing there, Venus. Nothing!" _Mercury wept out over the rushing over the storm. _"Jupiter's gone!"_

"_Stop your damn lying!"_ The older warrior yelled back furiously as she began heading through the smoke that enclosed the land from the last fateful strike of lightning. _"I did not do any of this to lose one of you now!"_

Serena felt the tears flowing down her face now but she didn't care. _'Oh god, Makoto! What have you done to yourself? Please tell me this is a nightmare, please!'_ As a wave of dizziness passed over the blonde she gripped the counter in front of her until her knuckles were sheer white. Even then her knees threatened to buckle under her weight. _'You can't be dead Jupiter, you just can't!'_

"Odango?"

The girl spun around at her nickname. She barely caught sight of Darien's concerned expression through her blurry vision before she lost her balance and began to fall to the floor. She closed her eyes waiting for the inevitable impact that she had no movement to stop. Because of this, the girl felt more than saw when Darien shouted her name and rushed to catch her seconds before her head made impact on the tiled floor.

"This is bad, Darien. A nightmare in the making." Her whispered words were directed at the man holding her up on the ground but her attention was fixated back toward the screen once she opened her eyes again. Tears continually flowed down her cheeks like a river but she made no movement to wipe them away. "She shouldn't of had to do this. It shouldn't have been her destiny."

Darien followed the girl's gaze and caught sight of the report. He instantly understood the girl's reason for crying; Jupiter had fallen in the line of duty. The cameraman was still showing the utter pandemonium happening around him.

All the senshi were crying themselves as they fought an onslaught of attacks from two newly appeared youma. Even from this far away it was obvious they were all becoming noticeably weaker by the second; their powers were draining from them at an incredible rate. _'No doubt the youmas are stealing their energy each time one of them makes physical contact.'_

'_When did this begin happening?' _Darien asked himself as he glanced down at the grieving Serena before looking back to the battle. _'Why didn't I feel the pull of Sailor Moon's transformation? I should be there to help!' _Even though the dark-haired man knew he should be transforming and rushing toward the battle without a second thought, he just couldn't bring himself to abandon the girl wound around his waist.

For whatever reason, Serena was deeply affected by the loss of the senshi and was grieving harder than anyone else in the arcade. As Darien looked around the establishment, he saw that everyone's attention had become fixated on the television since the time he'd come out from the backroom. Most were too stunned to do anything but stare blankly, unable to comprehend the man's words. Others had begun shedding a few tears but it was nothing like the blonde. She was crying even harder now but he was sure he was the only one that could hear her sobs through the shock that rippled throughout the room.

"_This is Tobin Hatsomo, still reporting live from Tokyo."_ the news reporter began again as he appeared back on screen. Even he looked visibly shaken at what has just occurred. _"I'm sorry to report that a Sailor Senshi has fallen on this night. Sailor Jupiter, as she was called, has just been killed."_

Serena's shoulders began to shake almost violently as she clung to Darien harder for support. Muffled sobs and words reached the man's ears as his arms embraced her in a comforting gesture.

"No, no, no!…pl-please, _no_! This is a dream, a night--nightmare. Jupiter isn't de…dead." she whispered into the dark-haired man's chest, the words broken up by occasional sniffles and hitches. As Darien closed his eyes in sorrow for the dead senshi, he began to stroke Serena's back slowly.

"Shh.. It's alright Serena. Shh… S-she did what she had to. She did what she thought was best to _save _everyone. Like you and me, Motoki and everyone else." he murmured quietly into her hair.

"No, no." Serena whispered back as she shook her head against his shirt. "This is all a dream. Jup…Jupiter will be at the next youma fight, smiling and joking around about what the y--_youma _looks like. And Mak--Makoto will be there tomorrow at school, with a bunch of f-food as an apology for s--scaring me like this. That's all, you'll see. Y-you'll see."

"Makoto…?" Darien questioned as he gently pulled back from the girl. Seeing the girl was still staring blankly at his chest, he put a finger under her chin and lifted her head up. Looking into her puffy, red eyes all he saw was sorrow and pain. "Serena, what's wrong with Makoto?"

The girl shook her head wildly, causing her pigtails to fly about. She didn't answer him otherwise, just cast her eyes back to the screen where Sailor Venus has punching the ground where Jupiter last stood. The camera zoomed in to show that all that was left were burned remains of an oak tree and scorch marks staining the ground. No signs of the girl, not even bits of her uniform, were in sight.

"_NO!" _A heart wrenching scream caused Darien to look back to the report as well. He frowned as he saw the normally cool and collected Sailor Venus crying her eyes out and visibly shaking with the effort to stay even sitting. Even though her hands were already bruised and bleeding she continued to pound the ground where the lightning senshi once stood without an ounce of mercy.

"_Jupiter, you will not do this to me!" _the woman screamed to the heavens. _"I order you to come back here! Do you hear me, Makoto, I order you to come back here at once!"_

Serena gave another smothered sob at the woman's pleas before burying herself back into the shell-shocked Darien's arms, trying to disappear in the depths of his black shirt. He in reply stared down at the top of Serena's head uncertainly. "Makoto is….?"

"_As you can see, everyone has been deeply affected by this news." _the reporter stated as he moved away from the senshi's mourning to give them privacy. _"For a city and its citizens, we have lost a defender to the hands of an unknown enemy. But for those who deeply knew her, like the women who mourn behind me, they have lost a friend, a comrade, a sister-in-arms. _

"_Will they ever be the same? We will have to wait and see. No doubt the question on everyone's minds right now though is where was Sailor Moon? And could she have been able to stop this horrific event from happening here tonight? This had been Tobin Hatsomo reporting live from Tokyo."_

Serena's sobs increased at the reporter's closing words and she couldn't seem to bury herself farther into Darien's enveloping embrace. The man on the other hand continued to gape down at the crying girl in his arms in complete disbelief. After a few seconds of silence, he closed his eyes in sorrow and pain as he laid his head over her own, allowing himself to comfort both of them.

"This whole time Serena….you've been Sailor Moon all along." he whispered to her silently. He squeezed the girl tighter and helped try to make her gain some comfort. He knew nothing he could do or say right now would help but couldn't resist apologizing. "I'm so sorry. So sorry, Serena."

The blonde heard his heartfelt words and knew he was apologizing for more than Makoto's sudden death. He was apologizing for her own destiny, one that might end on the same route as the senshi of protection's had. Even that numbing thought couldn't shake the grief out of her, if anything it made it worse.

As gasps and sobs managed to seize her throat, she managed to choke out a last few words before she blissfully allowed unconsciousness to take her far away from her pain. Far away from the raw guilt that began etching away at her soul.

"Oh--oh _god_. I k-killed her. I killed _Makoto_. What….what have I _done_?"

* * *

Posted: 8:15 pm-ish 4/11/08

Oh my goodness. So, honestly, how many of you managed to cry like your poor author here? I felt like such a prick after this.

I meant to end the chapter with a completely different scene involving a completely different character. Then…_this _tragedy formed out of unconsciousness movements of my fingers and late night ice cream milkshakes. Please don't kill me though, then you'll never know what else will happen in this story!

Please tell me what you thought of this unfortunate death and review! Much love peoples and I will slowly be working on chapter revisions so if you've run across any errors or inconsistencies please let me know.

Tiger Celeste


	18. Chapter 18

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

I have no excuses. School ended for me in June and up until then I was in panic mode (Graduating in high school is a big-deal and all). I continued to write but I felt my angst-problems would just get in the way of the story. The might have, I'm not exactly sure. I'm the biased author and all. Hehe. But, if you ask me, I'm pretty sure they did. You'll see.

I just wanted to say I have **no desire to abandon this story**. I'm continuing to write like always and am still getting ideas jumping out at me in the dead of night as I try to sleep. Ah…sleep. Haven't had a good night of that for a while.

Thank you to all of you that have kept with this story and have been awaiting the latest chapter. Sorry to keep you waiting! Without further ado: chapter 18! **This chapter takes place the same time/day as the last **chapter, just in other parts of the city by the way.

* * *

_--Last time with Luna; Chapter 17--_

_A black tail whished back and forth as Luna stared at the object in front of her with gleaming eyes. There had to be some way to optimize the device, to bend it to her whims. She knew that it held power; it had to so it could perform its duty. But what else could Serena's transformation broach do?_

_--_

_Luna stared down at the innocent pink and gold broach for a few more seconds before she picked it up between her teeth again and back-flipped. The item disappeared instantly, falling into her subspace pocket soundlessly. Looking around quickly, Luna searched the tree line to make sure Rei wasn't outside before dashing to the steps. More research would be no doubt be needed first though, before she could do anything. _

* * *

"That was close." a tall, olive-skinned woman whispered to herself in relief. She swung her left hand, which held a large staff with a garnet orb in its top-center, over the image before her and made it disappear from sight. She turned to the person behind her, smiling slightly. "Thank you for warning me. I did not foresee that coming."

The person, a little girl no older than four, was sitting on the ground playing with a battered teddy bear. At hearing the older woman's praise, she looked up and giggled, causing her short black hair to shake around her. "I helped! I helped!"

"Of course you did. You always help." the woman said softly as she walked up to the child and knelt beside her. "You saved many people. If that train had not…" She trailed off, not wanting to continue the thought but nonetheless placed a comforting hand on the child's raven hair and gave it a little ruffle, causing the girl to giggle again. "Thank you."

The woman stood a few moments later with a gentle smile of her own, watching her charge beaming with pride as she continued to play with her bear. Shaking her head at the bear's rather beat-up appearance, the taller female absently smoothed down her black uniform skirt as she walked back to her previous position, facing the dark expanse before her. "So many disturbances… I do not know if they can be resolved in time."

"Time! Time!" the little girl chanted to herself as she caught the woman's soft spoken words. She eagerly turned around and waved at the large, towering door that glowed in the distance through the foggy surroundings. She laughed happily as the etching on the door seemed to glow in reply to her greeting.

Sailor Pluto smiled to herself as she looked over her shoulder at the girl momentarily. Her smile suddenly dropped into a sad, bittersweet one as she took in the girl's appearance. Soft, raven-black hair that just brushed her shoulders, lively violet eyes that shined with intelligence and curiosity, pale white skin that sharply contrasted with the deep purple and black dress she was wearing. _'Her burial dress…'_

Pluto shook her head sadly as she stared at the dress. It was stunning: high-collared, Victorian-styled and long enough to just brush the child's ankles. It was a beautiful dress for such a sober ceremony. Pluto watched the child sadly before a sudden thoughtful look came to her eyes. She looked back toward the vast expanse and waved her staff in front of her. A few moments later she nodded to herself, satisfied with what she had been shown in the time-stream.

"Ataegina(1)." she called quietly as she turned back to the child, watching as her charge looked back up at her. "Would you like it if we went shopping today?"

The little girl's expression immediately brightened at the possibility and she eagerly began nodding her head. Before she could vocalize her answer though, the bright smile dropped off her face and she glanced back at the door. "But…_time_." she protested quietly as she looked back at her caretaker. "We need to watch time. Not shop."

Pluto smiled gently as she walked back to the girl and bent down to the her level once more. Dark burgundy eyes met a vivid amethyst ones steadily. "We do not have to watch time right now, little firefly. Time can watch itself for a little while."

Absently the child let go of her bear before holding her arms out to be picked up. As she was lifted up, she glanced behind her uneasily. Something felt wrong. "Ataegina? What is the matter?"

The small girl looked back toward Pluto anxiously, seeking reassurance from the wiser woman. "Time safe, Puu?"

Pluto hiked the girl higher up on her hip, glancing toward the towering door which seemed to be the cause of the girl's unease. The towering door glowed brighter in the distance, as if pleased with its mistress's attention. "Yes. I assure you, Ataegina. Time will be safe." she stated as she looked back down at the girl. "I foresee no problems in the time-stream today. It will be fine."

"Promise?" the girl whispered, her amethyst eyes shining brightly with her emotions. "Do you really, really promise that time will be safe?"

Sailor Pluto smiled at the girl's insistence. "Yes. I really, truly promise. In fact, I swear on my honor as the Guardian of Time and Space that nothing will go wrong with time today."

"A sacred promise." Ataegina nodded somberly, ignoring the subtly-shocked look on her guardian's face. "I believe time will be safe now." She brightened considerably then, finally allowing her joy and excitement to come to the surface. She giggled as she exclaimed, "We are going shopping, Puu!"

The ancient Senshi barely managed to shake herself out of the shock of learning her charge knew about such a sacred vow. _'I wonder if she…No. Now is not the time.' _ As the child continued to laugh, Pluto finally nodded at her, forcing a believable smile onto her own mouth. "Yes. We can indeed go shopping, Ataegina."

The girl nodded, hugging the woman's side tightly. "Thank you, Puu!"

"Yes, well…" Pluto murmured as a bright maroon light began engulfing the two. "It is about time we reacquaint ourselves with modern life."

The girl was quiet for a few moments, watching the lights engulf them. "Oh! Remember the gold, Puu!" She exclaimed loudly, feeling the woman shifting beside her.

The guardian grimaced as she tightened her hold on her charge. "Ah yes. Thank you for reminding me Ataegina. We will need new currency. Perhaps I can trade in some of the old money I have…" A few seconds later, the towering Time door glowed as the lights faded, leaving behind an empty expanse.

* * *

Luna choked back another sob as she leaned against a tall oak tree and heaved a deep breath. She brushed her burgundy eyes, which were blurred with tears, before continuing to struggle on a few moments later. She didn't know how long she had been walking. Minutes, hours, days; she had lost track. All she knew was the overwhelming pain that engulfed her body like a raging inferno that pierced her soul at every pained movement.

"Why? Why did I have to do it?" she whispered to herself in despair as she clutched another tree desperately. She knew she shouldn't have; some part of her, hidden deep inside herself, had warned her but she hadn't listened. She had refused with all her might and now, as punishment perhaps, here she was.

And she knew, just _knew_, it wasn't supposed to hurt like this. Something was wrong; _seriously _wrong. Who would have thought simple words, words she couldn't even remember now, would reduce her to a sniveling, anguished figure stumbling without direction. If only she could remember what she had said, maybe she could reverse the damage that had been done. But no, that same deep part of her that she had ignored, knew the truth: it was too late now. There was no turning back anymore.

They had been there, floating on the edge of her conscious thought like a lazy butterfly. Before she knew it, she'd managed to whisper the dreaded words absently, almost reverently; like it was once a common occurrence. She'd blacked out then, she had to have. All she could remember was a searing white hot pain that laced her body as it was enclosed with a burgundy light before blackness clouded her vision. Then she had woken up on the damp ground to every bone, muscle, and tissue screaming at the pain as tears began to choke her throat as she moved.

She had been so desperate that she'd surged to her feet in search of anything to numb the anguish. She didn't even recall how she'd gotten to this forest she was encased in. Briefly she recalled heading into the park for sanctuary, she must have--_"Ahhh!"_

She screamed as she tripped over a raised root, falling onto her stomach in an ungraceful flop. She knew that her legs must be caked with blood that had been released by the numerous twigs, brush, and rocks she'd encountered in her trek by now. No doubt the rest of her body was in the same condition too.

Luna groaned as she struggled to flip herself over, stopping a few times out of breath before finally succeeding in lying on her back. A fairly good-sized rock was digging into her shoulder blade but she couldn't bring herself to care right now. The sky overhead was black either from the canopy of trees, time, or a storm. She could only guess right now. "Sweet Serenity." she murmured absently, not knowing why the phrase felt so _right_, only that it did.

She was silent for a few minutes, listening to the wilderness around her with a sort of detachment. She was startled as she felt water beginning to run into her mouth. She brushed her face, feeling tears pour out of her eyes like tiny rivers. Funny, she could have sworn she had run out of tears by now.

"Is this going to be the end of me?" she whispered to the darkened sky. "Is this my punishment for wrongs I've done?"

She lay there for several minutes longer, continuing to listen to the sounds around her. This forest and its inhabitants seemed so…peaceful; perhaps she could stay here a while longer. As she glanced around the area, she left her eyes begin to grow heavy. She turned her eyes to the sky absently, suddenly seeing a crescent moon through a break in the tree cover. _'Such beauty…Strange how it wasn't there a second ago.'_

"Oh, my dear, Luna." whispered a voice, sounding far away to Luna's own ears. She blinked her burgundy eyes a few times, trying to bring her eyes back into focus. _'Had I fallen asleep? Where was that voice coming from?' _She laid there on the damp floor for a while longer, waiting for the voice to say something else. When nothing else was said, she closed her eyes again and sighed tiredly. _'Must have been my imagination.'_

"Dear, dear Luna." whispered the voice softly. Luna froze in slight fear, now noticing that the voice had said her name. She peered around carefully but it was hard to see anything; it apparently had gotten darker since the time she had last looked up to the sky. Nothing was visible in the small amount of light the moon provided except for a few shadowed trees and limbs hanging in an eerie manner.

She licked her lips absently, wincing as the taste of blood invaded her mouth soon after. She steeled her nerves, calling upon all the calm and discipline she had from being part of the Silver Millennium Court once upon a time. "Who--who's there?" She grimaced as her question came out whispered and shaky, not at all like she had planned.

"Who's there?" she repeated herself firmly, happy to hear it was steady now. She drew in a sharp breath as she glanced around her, looking for anything out of the ordinary. "I demand you show yourself at once!"

"Luna, do you not recognize me?" the voice asked, a touch of sorrow lingering on the words. "I had thought you of all people would identify me easily."

Luna's teeth clamped down on her lower lip painfully as she sat herself up in a sitting position, her body protesting the sudden movement. _'Goodness, it feels like I'm being stabbed by a thousand swords!'_ She barely managed to suppress the urge to fall back down, not to mention scream out in pain, instead she dug her appendages into the ground to keep herself in the image of strength.

"Luna? Is something the matter?" the voice asked softly, concern etching her voice now. Luna ignored the question and scowled into the tree line where the voice was coming from. _'Female.' _Luna decided. '_The voice definitely belongs to a female.' _"Who are you? How do you know my name?"

"I am surprised with your questions, Luna. You should be well aware that I know almost everything there is to know about you."

Burgundy eyes blinked in confusion, suddenly feeling something strange was happening. She looked up into the sky to see that the moon had disappeared. Remembering the woman's words, Luna's confusion disappeared on her face and anger took it's place. "And just what do you know about me?" she demanded sharply, flashing ruddy eyes everywhere.

"Oh, lets see here." the voice murmured in amusement. "I know that your name is Luna, quite obviously as you know. You are from a distant planet from another galaxy; the planet of the shape shifters, _Mau_, to be precise. You are currently guarding and advising the Sailor Senshi in their quest to find the Lunarian Princess, whom they are sworn to protect.

"In a great time of peace and prosperity, known at the Silver Millennium, you were one of the advisors to Queen Selenity and known as Luna of Mau, Lady of Tranquility. The title Lady of Tranquility came about due to the fact that the Queen felt indebted toward you for your assistance in raising the Queen's only daughter and heir, Princess Serenity, in addition to your council. Her Majesty believed that your personal tranquility is what kept you sane during the Princess's younger years. Thus, she honored you by making you an official member of the Lunarian Court. I do believe that is enough information to be of evidence. Unless, of course, you would like more?"

Luna had long since frozen at the woman's information, unable to believe she knew such things. Not even she herself knew all of the information, yet as soon as it was said, she knew it to be true without a doubt in her soul._ 'How had she known all that though? Not even I remember what my home world was called or that I carried the title Lady of Tranquility.'_

"You are crying." Luna flinched at the softly spoken statement, breaking out of her thoughts with a jolt. She absently rubbed at her face, wiping away at the moisture that was gathering there. _'It feels like I've been crying for ages. Perhaps I have…'_ she thought in wonder. _'A lifetime of silent tears. Some shed and others not.' _A small smile suddenly graced her face at a stray thought,_ 'Yes, perhaps my sudden poetic thoughts have always been with me for ages as well.'_

Luna was silent for a few minutes more, ignoring the inquisitive aura she could feel surrounding her from the woman speaking. Her own heart was beating frantically in her chest: pounding in fear, surprise, and anguish as the woman's words repeated over and over in her head. When the guardian finally spoke, her voice was shaky and unsure. "H-how do you know such things? It--It's _impossible_."

"Is it really that impossible?" the voice questioned softly. Luna's head jerked up as she heard twigs beginning to snap, as if someone was walking. However no matter where she looked she could not see anyone. "Can you not think of anyone who would know such intimate details of your life? Perhaps I am someone who knew you very well once upon a time."

Luna blinked, unsure of herself. '_Is there someone I am forgetting? Someone who would know me so well?'_ She began to stand slowly, deciding she didn't like this invulnerability she was suddenly feeling. Of course, that was only her plan. As she began to stand, her ankle, the one she had tripped on the root with, suddenly fold and she was left to fall onto the floor with a cry of pain. Through her blurry eyes, she managed to see that the area around it was much larger than normal, a throb forming easily in it.

"_Ahh! _No, no! Why, why did I have to do it!?_ Look where it's gotten me!" _she cried out, forgetting about the figure watching her steadily. She curled herself into a ball, trying to hide from her emotions and the pain that was beginning to overwhelm her once more. _'Another wave of pain.' _she thought to herself hazily. _'Was it just a few minute ago that I had the last one? It feels like a lifetime ago…'_

The woman watched curiously as Luna curled tighter and tighter within herself. Her face narrowed into a concerned frown as she surveyed the guardian's condition. She was matted with dirt, leaves, and twigs; her eyes and face clouded with tears tracks, old and new. Luna was the complete visage of misery and anguish, both physical and mental. "Would you like me to help you?" the woman finally asked, shuffling her feet absentmindedly.

Luna blinked as the words pierced through the haze her pain created. Slowly she unfurled her head from her body and looked up incredulously. She swung her head around in every way possible but still couldn't find the owner of the enchanting voice. "H-help…me? …_How?_"

"Do you not want any help, Luna? It would be simple for me to take away all your pain. Then you would not feel any unpleasantness anymore." the woman coaxed, slowly moving closer to the prone figure. "All you need to do is have physical contact with me. Touch my hand, that is all."

"T-take the…p-pain _away?_ All--all of it?" Luna murmured hazily, trying to remember how life had felt without this pain. That sounded so good; so, absolutely, wonderfully _good_. She struggled to keep her eyes open but she felt so impossibly tired--and so cold. "Why--why would you do that?"

"Because you are my friend, Luna. I do not want to see you in such pain."

"N-no more pain." the guardian groaned out, lifting a hand to her head groggily. She could feel herself falling into the woman's words and their promises. Her teeth began chattering as she felt a chill down her back. _'Some--something's wrong…It's too cold.'_ With startlingly clarity the truth of what was happening dawned on her: she was dying. And she knew that only this woman could save her. Save her from her mistake. "Sounds…. _nice_."

"Yes. You are correct. You would have no more pain, Luna" the woman stepped closer still, finally coming out of the tree line she had been hiding in. "Just touch my hand."

Luna opened her eyes, not remembering when she had closed them. Her eyes roamed around aimlessly before they spotted the woman staring at her, slowly coming closer. _'Beautiful… Like an angel.' _she thought in awe. She watched as the woman came to stand before her, only a few short feet away, and studied the angel-like woman. _'So familiar…' _

"Who _are _you?"

* * *

"Ataegina! Ataegina, _please _slow down!" Sailor Pluto called as she watched her charge run down the sidewalk eagerly. As the tall woman picked up her pace, she caught sight of what had no doubt drawn the attention of the young girl: a toy store. A _very _large toy store about five blocks away.

The guardian groaned tiredly, wondering what in the Galaxy had persuaded her to allow the girl an extended shopping trip. _'The number one skill of a child must be the ability to persuade adults to give them anything they want.'_ she thought humorously. Of course, she knew that the small senshi _did _deserve this trip. Neither of them left the Gates of Time for longer than a few hours and Ataegina had never had the time to act so, well, _carefree_.

'_She truly deserves the childhood that was deprived of her.'_ Pluto thought faintly. _'She never got a chance to experience life before--' _Abruptly, she cut off her train of thought with a sharp shake of her head. It wasn't the time to dwell on that time in history. It was what it was--the past. It was time for the future, a better future for everyone.

With a sigh, Pluto adjusted the bags she was holding, feeling her fingers lose circulation from their weight. _'Surely they can't weigh that much.' _she thought in surprise as she stopped by a bench and set them down for a second. Quickly she looked up to watch her small charge race through a group of teenagers, still heading toward the store that was three blocks away now.

Looking back at the purchases, she picked up the medium-sized bag from a book store that held a few children's books for Ataegina and placed it inside a slightly larger art store bag _'The arts and education are important to such young child'_, she thought absently, glad she bought something meaningful.

Carefully, but quickly, Pluto arranged the crayons, paint, color books, and other crafts inside the bag to make more room for the books. When that was done she turned to five particularly large bags that contained clothing. _'No wonder my hands hurt so much. I had forgotten we had purchased this much.'_

Of course, that had been when they first began shopping this morning and it was already late afternoon. She winced as she recalled the hours and hours spent in the department store and numerous articles of clothing Ataegina tried on and Ataegina made _her _try on. Though, she thought as she looked down at herself, it _had _yielded some nice clothing. And she knew, no matter how she wanted to deny it, there would be a time when she and Ataegina would need to adjust to civilian life. And this trip was helping them.

Unfortunately, that help involved many hours and some rather embarrassing experiences. The senshi blushed a deep red as she remember her early morning shopping trip. To distract herself she tried to straighten up the many articles of clothing but it didn't stop her mind from thinking back to this morning.

--Flashback--

_When they had walked into the first clothing store, Pluto had what she could only describe as a culture shock. Had people really lost all their modesty? Their morals? She hadn't seen such improper clothing since--while since _never_. Even the senshi uniforms had been more modest that what she and Ataegina had walked into._

_The mortified senshi had been in the process of walking out of the door, Ataegina in front of her with her eyes covered, when a saleswoman had rushed over. That's when the calm senshi had first blushed a deep red; the saleswoman asked if she need any help picking out lingerie, _undergarments_. She should have known._

_The saleswoman had then taken a step back and looked over the pair, no doubt zoning in on their clothing. Ataegina still in her high-collared Victorian dress and Pluto in the last civilian clothing she'd purchased-- a brown peasant dress from the 1930s. Of course, the saleswoman hadn't known just _how _out of date the two were in clothing, she just knew they _were_._

_Gratefully, she never questioned either about Ataegina's antique gown or Pluto's worn-out brown dress. As a matter of fact, the merciful salesman just stated that they must be out of town, something Pluto readily agreed with, and led them toward the childrens clothing department at the older woman's insistence. _

_There they spent a few hours, with the lady patiently answering any questions the two had. In the end the small child had every type of clothing she'd ever need. From new pajamas to tons of new everyday clothes to a formal -though much less formal than her burial dress- outfit and everything in between._

_As the child modeled the outfit she would wear for the rest of the day, a light purple dress that had white lacing on the hem, a pair of white tights, a pair of black boots, and a dark purple coat to ward off the chill of the autumn day, she giggle happily as she spun around in a circle. Glad that her charge was happy, Pluto had began to gather the girl's purchases in preparation of leaving._

_That is until the girl stopped spinning and looked at Pluto, insisting that it was her turn to get new clothes too. Unfortunately the saleswoman quickly agreed and practically dragged the protesting guardian to the woman's department, Ataegina giggling all the way._

_There the saleswoman had pulled item and item of clothing off the racks and shelves in a flurry of movements before shoving the pile of clothing into Pluto's arms and shoved the woman toward the dressing rooms. _

_After an hour and a half spent picking out and trying on clothing, Pluto had finally settled on five new suits, three skirt sets and two trouser sets; five different dress shirts; four different everyday shirts; a few pairs of comfortable trousers the saleswoman called "jeans"; a knee length black dress the woman insisted she have "just in case", a calf-length dress for everyday wear; two jackets- one called a "trench coat" and the other waist length and very thick to ward off the impending winter weather; and three different types of shoes- one the saleswoman called "sneakers" and "tennis shoes", another that were a pair of high heels not unlike the one she wore in uniform, and lastly a pair of calf-length boots._

_Glad the experience had finally finished, Pluto had heaved a sigh of relief, walking out of the dressing room in her new dark maroon colored skirt suit, black pleated shirt, and the black boots. She eagerly began folding the clothing with the intention of _finally _leaving when Ataegina stated innocently, _"You have no PJ-s!"

_Bafflement had filled the tall woman at the term "PJ-s" until the saleswoman's gasp caught her attention. _"That's right! You didn't get any pajamas or new under things!"

_Mortified, the guardian let herself be dragged unwillingly back to the lingerie department. Looking at the approaching department, she spotted a safer spot for her young charge to be-- actual, modest pajamas. _"Ataegina." _she stated quietly, gently pulling her arm out of the saleswoman's grip. _

_The saleswoman looked back, seeing the two talking quietly, and let them be before beginning to gather clothing. With the same swiftness she had earlier, she shuffled through the racks and shelves before piling clothing next to one of the dressing rooms._

"Ataegina," _Pluto said again as she crouched down to talk to the girl easier. _"I need you to do something for me, all right?"

"Look for new PJ-s for Puu!" _the little girl nodded. _"So I stay out of lawn-ger-ay area."

_Pluto smiled, silently marveling at the girl's intelligence and insight once again. _"Yes, that is right. Do you think you could do that for me?"

_Ataegina giggled, nodding eagerly. _"Yes! I will help!" _Without a look back, the girl practically skipped to where she saw the big pajamas, happy to help pick out more clothes for Puu._

_Pluto smiled as she watched the girl skip to the pajama area, absently calling out a "_Be careful!" _before turning around to face the lingerie department. 'Best make this as fast as possible.'_ _With a grimace on her face, despite the blush that stained her cheeks, the guardian squared her shoulders and walked to where the saleswoman was waiting._

'_Thirty minutes' Pluto thought to herself as she walked out of the dressing room for what she hoped was the final time with her new undergarments on, _under _her clothing and hidden of course. 'The longest thirty minutes of my life.' she mused. 'I did not think that was possible.'_

_The saleswoman suddenly appeared in front of her, holding up a blue bra with black lace to the guardian's chest. _"Are you sure you don't want to try on this type as well? I think it would suit you very well."

_The guardian choked, her face flaming as she backed away. _"No, no. That is quite all right. I am -fine- with my other selections." _she murmured, looking away to avoid the woman's expression._

"But you didn't pick anything interesting!" _the saleswoman insisted with a frown, placing her hands on her hips. _"You only picked solid design sets: black, green, and _white _for goodness sakes! No lace, no polka dots, no even a solid red!"

_Pluto's blush continued to flame brightly. She looked around, seeing a few women giving her sympathetic smiles. She looked back at the saleswoman, her blush now expanding to her chest and ears. _"I only picked what was necessary."

"No kidding." _the woman grumbled, placing the bra back onto the rack. _"If you are sure with your selections--"

"I am." _the guardian interjected firmly, stepping away from the dressing room as another woman tried to get past her._

"All right." _the saleswoman sighed disappointedly. _"Let's grab some socks and panty hose before we find your daughter then."

_Pluto blushed red again, for a different reason this time. 'Do I really seem like Ataegina's mother? I guess in a way, I _kind _of am. I had never really thought about it before…'_

_Distractedly, Pluto helped gather her undergarment purchases and followed the saleswoman. Truthfully she never paid attention to anything else the woman showed her, she simply nodded at everything while she thought about Ataegina and herself._

_It was only a few minutes later that Pluto was standing beside the saleswoman, Ataegina in front of them and showing off her selection of pajamas. In what only seemed like another few seconds, Pluto found herself and her charge in front of a cashier who was ringing up their purchases, the saleswoman on the other side dividing the clothing into piles._

"That will be 6, 830. 67." _the cashier stated, eyes boggling slightly as he began to fold the items and place them in bags. As he watched the woman nod before turning around, apparently looking for money on her person, he quickly turned toward his friend and whispered. _"Are they for real? That's a whole heap of money and neither looked phased by it!"

_The saleswoman blinked, folding the woman's cotton long-sleeve pajamas that were dotted with clocks (at the little girl's insistence of course), and responded. _"They're…special."

"What's that supposed to mean?" _the man whispered back, placing all the shoes back into their proper boxes._

"Can't you feel it?" _the saleswoman smiled. She began to place the little girl's items in one large bag absently. _"Deep in your soul, you can feel them. Their special, _otherworldly_."

_The man smirked, watching his co-worker's dreamy expression. _"I think you've been reading a bit too many of those fantasy books of yours."

_The woman shook her head, not blaming her friend for not believing her. _"Guess it's just me then. But I know it's true."

_The two were brought out of their conversation as the woman finally turned around, a large wad of cash in both of her hands. She smiled sheepishly at the two worker's expressions. _"Pardon me, how much was the purchase again?"

_The man stuttered the amount again, goggling at the pile of cash. The woman on the other hand winced as she noticed quite a few other customers gawking at the cash as well- enviously and quite hungrily. _"Excuse me… are you just carrying all the money in your pocket?"

_Pluto looked up from counting the money out at the hesitate question and blinked. _"Yes, I am."

"Oh dear, I was afraid of that." _the saleswoman whispered worriedly. Quickly she shifted through the bags that now contained all the purchases. A few moments later, she exclaimed _"Aha!" _and pulled out a medium-sized black purse. _"I knew it was a good idea to suggest this handbag."

_Pluto nodded, pretending to remember the item. 'I must have agreed to it while I was…distracted.' _"Yes, a good idea." _she finally murmured as she handed the money over to the cashier. She looked back up when she noticed the saleswoman was pulling out a smaller item from the purse. _

"And it came with this adorable pocketbook." _the saleswoman smiled happily, gesturing to the money remaining in Pluto's hands._ "May I?"

_Pluto handed the money over, watching the woman begin to sort through the money and place it inside the pocketbook neatly. A few minutes later, the woman placed the pocketbook back inside the handbag and handed it over to the quiet guardian. _"Now," _the woman began as she helped the man finish with placing the last few items in the bags. _"Be sure to keep that purse in a real safe place, all right? I don't want someone to steal it from you."

_Pluto nodded, swinging the purse over her shoulder as she'd seen a few other woman do throughout the day. _"Yes, I will. I promise." _It was a few moments later that Pluto was walking out of the door, carrying all the bags with ease, and Ataegina in front of her, swinging around in her new clothes happily. _

_Outside, they quickly stopped so Pluto could place her purse in the safest place she could think of--her subspace pocket-- and then they were on their way, heading to the next store. _

--End Flashback--

Pluto was brought out of her thoughts as she heard a loud beeping sound. Startled, she looked around her to see she'd begun walking again and almost walked straight into traffic. "Goodness, that was too close." she whispered, clutching her heart. _'I better be more careful.'_

Looking around at her surroundings, Pluto saw she was directly across from the toy store, it on the other side of the intersection. She winced as she imagined Ataegina walking across the street herself. The smaller streets and intersections they'd had to cross before had been appalling enough but this was a major intersection with six lanes in each of the four directions. There were many more vehicles and pedestrians crossing here then anywhere else they'd crossed. _'I'm positive she is fine, though.'_ she assured herself with a nod. _'Ataegina is smart, she would wait for others before crossing the intersection by herself.'_

Absently she pressed the button that would tell her when to walk and stepped back, waiting impatiently. She was there for a few moments before inspiration struck her. Glanced around and seeing there were no other pedestrians to watch her, she slipped gathered her hands together in front of her, placing one of them behind the other, before dropping in one of the large bags that contained her clothing into her subspace pocket. _'I don't know why I didn't think of doing this hours ago.' _she thought to herself, dropping in another bag slowly.

She was only able to drop in three of her bags before a couple of middle-aged women appeared beside her, forcing her to stop with a frown. _'Much better though.'_ she thought to herself, flexing her fingers absently. _'Now I only have to carry these three bags inside of the seven.'_

Pluto stood there, willing the light to change faster before she spotted her charge race out of the toy store, a bag clutched to her chest. _"__**Ataegina**__!" _she called out, hoping to catch the attention of the little girl before she raced off somewhere else. _'Oh dear, I hope she didn't steal that.' _she thought, biting her lips worriedly, as she peered around the vehicles passing between her and her charge.

Of course, the dark-haired woman chastened herself moments before she spotted an elderly woman appeared beside the child, stopping her with a slight pat on her head. _"__**Ataegina**__!"_ she yelled out again, relieved when the child turned at the sound of her name. She walked a few steps before a black SUV came hurtling by, forcing her to back away again.

"Puu!" the dark-haired child called back with a giggle, racing toward the intersection with the single-mindedness of reaching her caretaker. The elderly woman behind the girl gave a startled shout, hobbling after her. "Look, Puu! The nice lady bought me something!"

The Time guardian was much too worried about the child's trek toward the road than absorbing her words. Alarmed, as the child barely missed being hit by a motorcycle as she began to cross the street, a frantic honking drew her attention as a freightliner delivery truck suddenly came swinging out from around the corner a block away.

Horrified, she turned back to the girl, seeing her struggling to pass between the first and seconds lanes. She dropped her bags without a care as she cupped her mouth, hoping her call would carry loud enough. "Ataegina, stop it! Go back! _Now!_"

Surprised at her guardian's harsh tone, the girl stopped in her tracks as she raced in front of the third lane. She blinked hurt amethyst eyes at the woman, dropping her bag --which contained a new backpack and bear-- with a flop. "Puu?"

Pluto winced, imagining the tears that were no doubt flooding the girl's eyes. She started to walk across the street herself before a sedan zoomed by, forcing her to jump back once more. "Ataegina, I am not angry. Just move out of the way, _please!_"

The girl took a few steps toward Pluto before the frantic honking finally pierced her hearing. She turned toward the sound, noticing the large truck coming closer, its tires squealing frantically enough for sparks to spring off now and then. Terrified, she screamed, looking toward Pluto for help.

The woman on the other hand had finally managed to get a break and raced out, stopping when she was only two lanes away from her charge. Vehicles continued to zoom between the two, desperate to save themselves from the out of control truck instead of giving the two a chance to reach one another. "Ataegina, stay there all right. Do _not _move." Pluto ordered, clinching her empty hands.

The child nodded, too petrified to speak. Another motorcycle sped past her, forcing her to fall onto her side roughly. With a cry of pain, she clutched her arm, a bright glow instinctively bursting forth from her hand. "Stop, Ataegina, do not let your powers come out!"

The girl raised her eyes to see Pluto shaking her head, a fierce scowl on her face. Terrified at the hard look, Ataegina released her arm, the glow flaring a few time before blinking out of sight. She clinched her teeth, sobs erupting from her throat as her body began resisting the stop in the healing process. "Puu… my arm… It h-_hurts_." she cried.

Pluto grimaced as she looked at the arm, there was a large laceration on it as it began to swell a deep red. _'Broken no doubt.'_ "It will be okay, Ataegina. Just hold on." she murmured before her head snapped up. The truck had fallen swung around in a desperate attempt to stop its track but its momentum kept it moving toward them, scrapping the ground with loud sprays of sparks. Around them, pedestrians and cars were racing away from the road, some calling out warnings while others simply screamed.

Frantic herself, Pluto clutched her necklace, which she'd shrunk her Time Key into after leaving the Gates of Time this morning. She pulled it off, making it enlarge before striking the ground with its base in one solid movement. A dark maroon light exploded out of the Time Key before it cleared and the Guardian looked around to see time had suspended. _'Good. It worked.'_

Glancing down at herself to make sure she was still in civilian clothing, Pluto adjusted the Time Key in one hand and calmly walked past the frozen Mercedes between Ataegina and herself before grabbing her charge in relief. The tall woman continued with the girl on her hip, walking toward the bag Ataegina dropped before. Just before reaching the bag with her fingertips, she was overcome by a stabbing pain in her heart and her breath seized in her throat.

The guardian's legs involuntarily buckled below her, forcing her to fall only two lanes from the sidewalk. Around her, her powers began to fail as time struggled to catch back up as sounds and actions reared back to life. People once again continued with their screams and called-out warnings, not noticing the miraculous movement the two had made.

The ancient woman lay sprawled out in front of the second lane, instinctively wrapping around her Time Key like it was her lifeline. She blinked open her dark eyes, not knowing when she clinched them shut. She peered around until she spotted Ataegina just in the reach of her outstretched hand.

The little girl's eyes shined with realization as it occurred to her what the woman had done. She sat up slowly, a cry bursting from her mouth as she remember her wounded her arm. Like Pluto told her though, she didn't heal herself and instead looked around slowly. She blinked as she noticed the people were moving again, but it was obvious that there was something wrong. "Puu…?"

Pluto gave a thin smile, her hand reaching the girl's slowly. "My little firefly."

Ataegina looked around, seeing the truck had also slowed due to the Time senshi's magic but was still moving toward them. "Puu, we need to move!" she urged, sitting up higher and pulling on the woman's hand.

Pluto gave a cry of pain at the pull, curling around her Time Key tighter. Ataegina let go suddenly, startled at the cry. Her amethyst eyes shined brightly as her thoughts moved a mile a minute. "Puu… what's wrong?"

"I-I am not sure." the woman murmured, her breaths beginning to come faster and shorter. "Just…just get out of the way Ataegina. Please."

"Come on, Puu. We need to move." The girl insisted again, grabbing the woman's hand softly. "Time will catch up soon."

Pluto smiled, squeezing the girl's hand. "Dear, Ataegina. You always were so smart." She squeezed her eyes as a spasm made her drop the hand holding Ataegina's to clutch her heart once more. _'What is this? I have never felt such pain before…Is it my powers? Or something else?'_

"Puu! Puu!" Pluto snapped her eyes open to see Ataegina hovering over her frantically, a desperate shine to her amethyst eyes. "Keep your eyes open. You have to fix Time, something is wrong!"

"Wrong?" the woman murmured, looking past the frantic child to see Time slow before blinking into proper placement and speed, then starting the process all over again seconds later. "Some-something is interfering."

Pluto struggled to her feet, feeling herself give way a few times before catching herself on her Time Key that was slowly becoming a cane. "Come--come on. We need to….to move." she stuttered. As she almost fell once more, Ataegina rushed up to her and helped her as much as she could. The short few feet seemed like miles before the two collapsed in a heap on the sidewalk.

"Puu… what are we going to do?" Ataegina cried, falling onto the woman's stomach desperately. Pluto winced as even the girl's slight weight made her body feel like it was being crushed. Her fingers felt out her staff and she closed her eyes in concentration. _'Come on. Come on. __**Work**__.'_ she urged, feeling the Time Key grow warm in her grasp. She turned her head sideways, watching the freight truck as it would barrel out of control before freezing in its tracks. Moments later it would continue its strange track: freeze, move, freeze, move. _'What has caused this?'_

In a split second decision, Pluto aimed her Time Key's orb at the vehicle and willed her powers to work. A blast of maroon light erupted out of it before shooting out at the truck and enveloping it, managing to stop it permanently. With a grimace at the thought of what she was about to do, Pluto slowly moved her hand until it was clutching her charge's head and smoothed the short hair comfortingly.

"Ataegina. My dear firefly. My _daughter_." she whispered, smiling as she heard the girl gasp in surprise and then she looked up at her. She stopped a moment, wiping away the tears that were clouding the girl's eyes. "I am sorry. Promise me you will be safe."

She looked away quickly before the girl could see the truth in her eyes. Then, with a heavy heart and mind, she lifted her Time Key and in one final swoop brought it down on the ground, crushing the glittering garnet orb into a million little shards. The last thing she heard was Ataegina's startled cry and her yell.

"_Mommy! _Mommy, don't leave me!"

Her smile widened before the blackness enveloped, silencing the sobs and chaos around her as Time caught back up once more in a whirl of sounds and actions. She had no time to wonder at the wetness she could feel trailing down her face.

* * *

The woman smiled sweetly as she walked a few paces closer to Luna, her blue eyes shining brightly as she looked down. Her smile widened as she heard the guardian release a startled gasp. "It is _me_, Luna. Princess Serenity. I have _finally _found you. You and the Senshi do not have to look anymore."

Luna's breath seized in her throat as her eyes suddenly flooded with joy. Her voice came out as a simple whisper but it was still reverent and steady despite her pain. "_Princess! _I--I had thought but it--_oh! _It's really you… You found us! Oh, I'm so glad. So, _so _glad."

The woman's smile grew fond at the woman's ramblings which were so like the ones she could remember. Still, before the woman could say anymore, she shook her head gently. "We will discuss this later Luna. You need to be healed first."

"N-_No_, Your Highness! " Luna gasped, her own head shaking as she began to uncurl herself from her ball slowly. With a wince and well-hidden whimper of pain, she pulled herself painfully up into a sitting position. "I am fine. Save your energy for something more important! I beg you, Your Highness!"

"Nonsense." the woman replied, her hand smoothing the crescent moon on the guardian's forehead, immediately stopping the protests at the gentle touch. Luna watched in awe as a light began to glow off the Princess's own forehead. "You are in _need_, Luna. I have the ability to help you and, more importantly, I _want _to. Your transformation should not cause such pain. Just grab my hand Luna and I will help you. I can _heal _you; I just need physical contact with you."

Luna thought for less than a split second before lifting her hand and touching the Princess's own outstretched appendage. As the monarch threaded the guardian's smooth, pale, human fingers with her own, a while flash of white light erupted between the two. Luna closed her eyes in relief as the pain faded away in a sea of white. As she peered open her shining eyes, she could see her princess smiling.

"Soon Luna." the royal murmured as she squeezed the awed Luna's hand once more. "I will make sure you can _stay _a human without pain. I promise you. Everything will be all right. I will mend your transformation."

* * *

Done: July 14, 2008. 1 o'clock PM.

Posted: July 14, 2008. 10:25-ish

(1): Ataegina was the goddess of rebirth, fertility, nature, and healing in the Lusitanian (Portugal) mythology. She was also associated with the moon and may have been a goddess of it-- though that will not take a part of this story, at least from my knowledge it won't.

I have no pronunciation for the name by the way, I could not find one at all. But, if you'd like to know, I say: at--ah--GEE--nah

But if anyone does know Portuguese or know/find the proper pronunciation, please tell me!

Well, I bet you're all dying to kill me for not telling you what happened to Darien and Serena. Haha, don't worry. That will all be revealed in the next chapter. I hoped you liked this chapter though, with it introducing Pluto and her nice little ward, Ataegina. And let's not forget Princess Serenity.

Dun! Dun! _Dun!!_

Tiger Celeste


	19. Chapter 19

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

Well first off I'd like to _**immensely thank **_the reviewer **MoonieTenshi **that pointed out that the pronunciation of Ataegina is _(A-téé-ge-nah) _in Portuguese_. _Thank you! …-insert sheepish grin- Unfortunately her real name won't be mentioned for some time.

On the note of Ataegina, yes, she is indeed Sailor Saturn. I'm not exactly sure if I'll get into her history and why she was with Sailor Pluto but she is who you think she is and will continue to play a part in this story. And, **no**, Dr. Tomoe is not going to be her guardian. I'm pretty sure he will not be mentioned in this story.

As for me introducing Pluto only to kill her off in the same chapter… well, you'll have to see about that. You don't _really _think I would kill of her, do you? Then again, I did kill off Jupiter (By the way, I have added a little spin to Makoto's history that I am _absolutely _positive none of you saw coming. I hope not anyways.)

Now, I know a few of your weren't pleased with the last chapter for whatever reason but I did write it for a reason. Almost everything I write is for a reason and if it doesn't seem to have one, please point it out and I will gladly be either reminded of it or will tell you that it is part of the current plot. Thank you.

Now a few of you wonderful reviewers asked _who _the princess from the last chapter is. All I can bring myself to say is that you will learn next chapter and no, it _**wasn't **_Serena; she has never transformed into Princess Serenity in this story.

I hope you enjoy this chapter and please review!

_--Last time--_

"_This whole time Serena….you've been Sailor Moon all along." he whispered to her silently. He squeezed the girl tighter and helped try to make her gain some comfort. He knew nothing he could do or say right now would help but couldn't resist apologizing. "I'm so sorry. So sorry, Serena."_

_The blonde heard Darien's heartfelt words and knew he was apologizing for more than Makoto's sudden death. He was apologizing for her own destiny, one that might end on the same route as the senshi of protection's had. Even that numbing thought couldn't shake the grief out of her, if anything it made it worse. _

_As gasps and sobs managed to seize her throat, she managed to choke out a last few words before she blissfully allowed unconsciousness to take her far away from her pain. Far away from the raw guilt that began etching away at her soul._

"_Oh--oh _god_. I k-killed her. I killed _Makoto_. What….what have I _done_?"_

* * *

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say this place was turning into an infirmary. Someone's always coming back here it seems." Motoki tried joked as he followed Darien to the back room. When the other man didn't say anything, instead continuing to carry an unconscious Serena carefully, he sighed. "So what caused--"

"Do you have two blankets by any chance?" Darien interrupted, correctly guessing what Motoki was going to say. The other man simply did not need to know why Serena fainted and that was that. He stopped in bewilderment as he realized how _protective _he was sounding. To distract himself, he looked around the room and second later a frown formed when he realized that there was no where to lay Serena down at. The man that Minako had punched was still passed out on the couch, taking up the usual space. Besides that, the only other pieces of furniture were a moderate-sized armchair and an old rolling desk chair.

"Or anywhere else to place Odango comfortably?" he grumbled with a shake of his head. _'Can this even be classed as a break room? Most of the space is taken up by all the boxes and the small employee lockers. It's not very… cozy. Then again, the staff stays in the main room for break anyways. Can't blame them I guess.'_

Motoki stood behind Darien as the said man stopped in the doorway, blocking the room from sight. "Huh? What do you mean?" He pushed Darien out of the way and walked inside himself when his friend didn't respond. "Just put her on --oh." He trailed off as he caught sight of the couch. He threw a sheepish smile over his shoulder at Darien. "I kind of forgot about him."

Darien refrained from rolling his eyes as he slowly leaned against the wall by the door. "Yeah, it seems we both did."

The arcade worker frowned thoughtfully. "He should be awake anytime now though." As if to prove his words to himself, he walked over and felt around for the man's pulse, keeping his fingers there for a few seconds. After a few more quick examinations, he looked back at Darien with a smile. "Yeah, I'm guessing he'll wake up in an hour or so. His pulse is pretty strong and everything else seems normal. He was just a little …_winded_, I guess."

Darien snorted in amusement but wisely said nothing as a defensive look entered Motoki's eyes at the sound. He didn't get time to consider it because at that moment Serena unexpectedly gasped and tried to turn over in his arms. With a frown at her obvious distress, he ignored everything else and tightened his hold. He only hoped it felt as reassuring as he wanted it to be. _'Come on Serena. I know you're no doubt thinking you're to blame for Sailor Jupiter, for _Makoto's _death, but I promise that it wasn't your fault._' Unknowingly his eyes began to soften as a few tears escaped Serena's tightly closed eyelids. _'You know better than me how strong-minded Jupiter was and I bet anything that Makoto was no different. She was determined to do what she did, no matter who said what.'_ With a frustrated groan as the tears continued to escape his companion's eyes, Darien slouched further against the wall and shifted Serena so she was leaning her head against his shoulder in a more comfortable position. _'Everything has become that much, __**much **__more complicated...'_

"Hey, Dare." Motoki called as he kneeled on the floor by the couch. As the black-haired man looked over tiredly, Motoki waved a black cell-phone between his fingers by its antenna stub. "I found this in his briefcase so I'm going to call someone in case they're worried. Hopefully they can come get him too."

"Good idea." Darien agreed as he watched the briefcase close with an audible snap. _'Must have carried it in while I carried Serena.' _he thought distractedly as Motoki stood up with a stretch and headed toward the door. "Tell me what they say alright?" he added, shifting Serena's head closer to his shoulder absently.

"Sure thing. I'll just be outside if you need anything." Motoki stopped then, one hand against the doorframe, and smirked at Darien through the corner of his eye. "I'm leaving you two kids alone. _But _there's still a chaperone in this room, unconscious or not."

The blonde didn't get to say anymore before a fierce scowl planted itself on Darien's face and he took a threatening step closer. "What is that supposed to mean, Motoki?" he practically growled. "That I'm going to take advantage of Odango?"

"No!… I just--I mean-- you are acting so--" Motoki gulped as the scowl darkened into a murderous glare. _'Big mouth!' _he chastised himself, _'You can't go saying things like that! Darien's not close enough to Serena for those kind of jokes! I really am becoming more like Caderyn everyday.' _He gave an inner groan and quickly edged out the room before Darien had a chance to follow. "Nothing, Darien! Nothing at all. Just forget I said anything!"

The homicidal scowl wasn't removed from Darien's face until he was sure his friend was well outside. Only then did he allow himself to sigh and close his eyes; the back of his head hit the wall with a thud. "Damn Motoki. I'm not going to do anything to Serena. _Especially _when she thinks she killed one of her best friends." He glanced down at the girl as he said this, seeing the tear tracks still on her face. "What _are _we going to do, Odango?"

'_And what will this mean for Sailor Moon and the rest of the Senshi now that Makoto has died? And what about _us_? You just told me you're Sailor Moon but you don't know I'm Tuxedo Mask.' _Darien eyed the man on the couch suspiciously, as if the unconscious man could read his thoughts, before immediately rolling his eyes at his own ridiculousness. _'Paranoid much?'_

With a smirk of amusement, Darien roamed his eyes around curiously before catching sight of the arm chair. He glanced between it and the girl in his arms thoughtfully before coming to a decision. "Might as well get comfortable I guess, Odango. I can think about all this while you rest."

A few minutes later Darien was somewhat comfortably seated on the chair with Serena in his lap. Her head was resting against his chest and her legs stretched out over his own and the side of the chair. When he was positive she was as comfortable as he could make her in the confined space, he wrapped his arms around her waist to keep her there. _'It'd be my luck for her to roll off unexpectedly. Then I'd get an ear-full because she fell onto cold, hard, linoleum.' _He grinned and settled in for a long wait.

* * *

Her pain was almost a tangible thing right now. She could only remember feeling this terrible a handful of times her entire life, both in modern times and during the Silver Millennium. Tears were clouding her eyes but she didn't let them deter her from marching toward her destination. She only hoped that he would met her before she walked toward her death alone. Of course if he did not appear, then so be it. She would seek revenge by herself if it came down to it. The Dark Kingdom won't get away with killing one of her best friends, her _sister_, like this. Not while she still lived.

Valkyrie, the Senshi of Storms and Protection, _Makoto Kino _would be avenged. Every identity she'd ever had -from Áine, to Venus the Senshi of Love and Beauty, to the former leader of the Imperial Senshi, to even Minako Aino- swore upon her comrade's revenge.

"What are you doing, especially _here_? Of all the places to be." She immediately spun at the voice, her deadly heart-chain snapping out to be used at the slightest threat. She didn't even relax when she saw it was just him leaning against one of the black pillars that lined both sides of the hall. She glared at him, trying to ignore the tears that still clouded her vision. She honestly tried to stay calm but the next thing she knew she was tightening her hold on her chain -almost like it was her lifeline- and screeching. "Where the hell is that… that--that _bastard_!"

Kunzite frowned in concern as he took in Venus's condition. Her golden hair was swinging out about her body like a cape without her trademark red bow. The usually pristine mane was knotted and full of leaves, twigs, and dirt. Her uniform was torn, covered in grime and blood --human and what passed as youma blood. Her whole body was covered in scratches and bruises. Her face was red and blotchy as tears ran rivers through the dirt that had gathered there as well. Her eyes, despite their sadness, burned with a fiery hate. _That _was what caused his main worry.

With an inward grimace, Kunzite kicked off of the column he had been comfortably leaning against. Keeping a discreet but close watch on the weapon she clinched, he calmly meet her eyes and spoke. "Áine, what is wrong? What has happened?"

"He _killed _her! And he didn't even have the honor or decency to show his miserable face for more than _five _minutes!" she hissed as her shoulders began to shake. Whether it was in rage or sorrow Kunzite wasn't sure but, if he had to guess, it was a mixture of both. A very dangerous mixture when it concerned this woman.

"Who, Áine? Who killed whom?" he questioned gently as he walked closer. He stopped a few feet in front of the orange-clad Senshi and patiently waited for her to collect herself. He visibly winced as the heart chain began to burn a brighter gold before vanishing from her hands all together; hopefully it was obeying its mistress's silent command to hibernate. _'Thank Terra for that. If she had--'_

Kunzite was startled out of his thoughts as Áine launched herself into his arms. She gave him no more time than to utter a surprised _"oomph!" _before she began pounding at his uniform-clad chest mercilessly. "_Zoicite_!" she said, each vicious hiss accompanied by an equally vicious hit. "Or whatever that miserable excuse of a _thing_, no a _**monster**__, _is supposed to represent! He killed _Valkyrie_!"

"Áine…" He began before a slow, slithering sound immediately caught his attention. Further down the hall a slug-like youma was making its way to the holding room, crossing the intersection where this hall and another met. Kunzite silently swore and gathered the struggling woman deeper into his embrace. Seconds later they were hidden in the shadows of the pillars and he was hurriedly tossing the darker side of his cape over them. "Shh… Áine… You have to calm down. You cannot …you cannot be caught here." he murmured. He cautiously looked through the gap he'd left beside his eyes, making sure not to make any noise as the slow-moving youma glanced in their direction for a few moments before continuing its way across the hall.

Venus had slowed her pounding, sensing the danger herself, and now simply clung to her companion in silence. Kunzite stood motionless for a few more tense moments, ensuring the youma wasn't going to return, before he gave a relieved sigh and dropped the cover of his cape. Feeling the motion, Venus looked up and meet her angry, watery blue eyes with his soft green ones before abruptly pressing herself more firmly against his chest, releasing a loud sob. A truly, utterly _heartbroken _sob.

Kunzite's brow etched in worry as he caught Áine as she began slid down his front. _'It's disorienting,' _he mused sadly as he lowered them both to the floor slowly, _'to watch such a proud warrior like Áine become a delicate, mourning woman before my eyes. She is usually so strong; never truly allowing herself to become overcome with such grief._ _She always tries to hold herself in check and never allow her grief to come to the surface. But she has seen and done so much… She _needs _this unabashed time to mourn a lost sister and everything else.'_ Tightening his arms around Áine as she half-laid in his lap and cried, Kunzite lent her his silent support for as long as she wanted it and vowed to keep a vigilant watch over her all the while.

An unknown amount of time later, he lifted his head from where he had lain it on top of Áine's and looked down at her. The tears had finally stopped moments before but their marks still shown brightly on her face from an unseen light, making her glow unearthly in this dark, evil plane. He tried to smile reassuringly as he wiped off the silvery tracks. "Will you tell me now? What has happened, Áine? Please. Tell me."

The female warrior was silent for a few moments before taking a shaky breathe, feeling as though she'd been through Hell and back. She knew, in a way, she had and it didn't make her want to tell the story anymore. _'But this is Kunzite,'_ She told herself firmly, _'and he deserves to know what happened. Especially after he comforted me when he doesn't have to anymore.' _And unknowingly, or perhaps _knowingly_, he _had _also stopped her suicidal mission. With that thought the blonde quietly began her mournful tale.

She started with how she'd received the frantic call from Mercury to how she silently debated telling Sailor Moon or not about the battle. Then, she described how she had arrived only to see Zoicite minutes before he disappeared, leaving her to fight youma upon youma. She told him it had been a struggle to even reach where the other Senshi were battling. Finally, she expressed the horror at watching Jupiter consume herself in the most powerful storm she'd seen since the Silver Millennium days and the despair at not finding a body to bury.

"We ended up destroying the rest of the youmas." she said quietly, wiping her eyes in an attempt to get rid of any remaining tears. She eased out of Kunzite's arms gently, not wanting to burden him anymore with her presence. She still turned to him though, smiling sadly as she finished her tale. "Before, as you can guess, I came here…"

"Looking for revenge." Kunzite finished her statement with a sigh. He pulled her back into his arms on a spur of the moment decision, ignoring her startled gasp as he pressed his lips to her forehead. "I am sorry. Jupiter should not have died such a death."

Venus seemed to accept his embrace before she began to absorb his words. With a strong shove she pulled away once more, only this time with an angry huff. Her blue eyes were bright with fury and unshed tears as she locked them onto his confused face. "That's all you can say? You're _sorry_. Damn it Kunzite, it's too late for simple apologies! Valkyrie needs to be avenged!"

"I understand where you are coming from." He answered quietly as he ran a hand through his white hair in frustration. She always managed to do this; why had he not prepared himself for this abrupt change in her? His eyes narrowed as he realized that he had hoped she would not turn so cold this time; so much for that. He frowned as he watched her own eyes narrow. "I _do _understand Áine. _However_, you cannot seek revenge. Not here. Have you even realized where you are?"

"Yes I know where I am!" The woman belted out as she jumped up to her feet, eager to get further away from Kunzite's overwhelming presence. "I'm in the Dark Kingdom's oh-so-evil lair. So _what!_ I will do what I have to in order to avenge by sister as she deserves to be. I owe her that."

"Not here. You would be killed, _destroyed_, before you could even sneak up on this Zoicite." The white-clad man warned bluntly as he slowly stood to his feet. "You are in the enemy's domain, Áine. Think about this rationally. He is able to call upon every youma in this Hell -and even Beryl if he felt inclined- to fight with him. You, on the other hand, would be all alone."

"I wouldn't be alone." she insisted angrily, placing her fisted hands against her hips. "You would have been there. You would help me fight. I know it." Kunzite started to protest but she waved him off with a dismissing hand. "I know, I know. Your cover would have been blown after all this time and you won't have been able to complete this self-imposed mission of yours. But you _would _have helped me. Don't deny what you know in your heart."

The general said nothing for a few minutes, staring off into the darkness of the Dark Kingdom's limitless plane before looking back at her with stony eyes. "You need to leave. I will do what I can but you must promise me that you will not return. Ever."

She met his eyes firmly before having to look away from the intense emotions taking up residence there. "I cannot promise such a thing. _However_,I will promise not to return while you are still on your mission. Is that satisfactory?"

When he was silent for a few more moments, she looked back to see him considering the offer. He wasn't happy, she could tell by that slight tick in his jaw, but soon enough he gave an almost imperceptible nod. "That is satisfactory. For now at the very least. Now you must leave and destroy whatever wormhole you managed to use to get here."

"Why?" She couldn't help but smirk. "That wasn't part of the deal. How am I supposed to come back here and finish the job?"

Kunzite rolled his eyes as he walked away, heading back to his quarters. "Just do it, Áine. I do not want such a place to exist when you are so desperate to plan your demise. Besides," he added as he turned around to give her a courtly bow. "It saves me from having to do it later. Terra knows I have had to close up enough stray ones by myself. "

Venus smiled slightly in return, unable to stop the rolling of her own eyes. _'Such an odd man.' _she mused as she walked away in the opposite direction. _'I guess we really do fit well together. A strange couple we are, if you can ever call us that. Hopefully one day he will forgive me for my actions. Soul-mates have to mean something, right?'_

* * *

Motoki had anticipated that he would be able to contact someone about the man in ten minutes but, as luck would have it, it took almost twenty. Almost every listing in the man's phone was to a company, agent, or what seemed to be clients. And there were _a lot _of listings. His wife, as if turned out, waseven was listed as _Taiko, Mara _instead of a more common _Home_ or _Wife_. When she'd answered the phone, the woman had been beside herself with worry and immediately set to questioning the haggard arcade worker.

Motoki calmly answered each of his questions as best and honestly as he could. He was proud to say that he only stretched the truth twice. Once when the patient(a Mr. Jonathon Taiko as it turned out)'s wife repeatedly asked if her husband should go to the hospital. To reassure Mrs. Taiko, Motoki had told her his friend that was in pre-Med (Darien, of course) had examined her husband and given him the okay. It had only been a _little _lie, Motoki reasoned to himself, because _he _had been trained in basic medic at the Academy and he _had _quickly examined the man. The second lie was simply that he didn't know who had knocked the man over. Motoki just couldn't bring himself to tattle on his own sister. Old habits died hard after all.

"Oh good, he is fine then." the woman finally sighed after nearly a half-hour of questions and worries. "I was so worried when he didn't show up in time for our dinner plans. When can I pick him up?"

Motoki sighed in relief as well; he was just glad the questioning was over though. "We believe he should be awake any time, Mrs. Taiko. You can come now if you'd like."

"I'll do just that. Could you tell me the address of this Crown Arcade?" she asked after the distinct sound of paper rustling could be heard.

A few minutes later, Motoki hung up with the woman after giving her the address and some simple landmarks to look for in case she got lost on the way there. _'One thing down.'_ With a yawn, he closed the cell-phone in his hands and headed back to the backroom to tell Darien the news.

"Hey, Darien," he began cheerily as he walked through the door. He stopped short only a few feet into the room as he spotted his friend's position. His lips twitched up into a full blown grin as he looked for something to immortalize this moment. After a few minutes of looking around, he rushed out to the main room to ask one of the waitresses for the digital camera she always seemed to carry with her. When he returned moments later, the shiny blue digital camera in hand, Motoki snuck up in front of the duo on the chair and positioned himself and the camera in a good angle. With a slight pause to make sure the flash wasn't on to disturb them, he snapped a picture. And then a few more from other angles, just for good measure of course.

With a practically silent chuckle, Motoki slowly stood up and backed toward the door, afraid to turn his back on the couple in case Darien came after him. That man could be so unpredictable. _'Kind of like being King of Terra, Earth, whatever you want to call it. That sure was unpredictable.' _he thought with a wry grin. _'At least until I remembered a little more about him and who he was. It was still a shocker though.'_

With a shake of his head to scatter his thoughts, Motoki twisted around to face the right direction. When the sounds of the arcade's customers flooded his ears as he came to the end of the short hallway, he looked down at the camera screen. Both Serena and Darien were comfortably sitting in the confided chair and seemingly wrapped around each other. Serena looked like she was in a peaceful heaven with her head nestled under Darien's child, a slight smile on her face. Her hair was covering a good majority of her legs and Darien's; almost like a curtain. Darien, in turn, had his arms wrapped protectively around Serena's waist, one hand tangled up in the long hair. He also had a slight smile as the side of his head was cushioned by one of Serena's buns.

But what made it the perfect blackmail, Motoki thought, was that you could clearly see Darien's hand under Serena's shirt, no doubt stroking the skin there. _Then _there was the fact that Serena's lips were pressed against Darien's exposed neck. Absently, no doubt, but the gestures were still there.

'_And they say they don't even get along.' _Motoki started to whistle happily, a grin practically splitting his face in half. _'But perhaps the best part of all this (even though having something over their heads until they get their senses together is pretty great) is that I'm sure when this is all settled, Jadeite will pay handsomely for a few copies of his own to be used as blackmail. __**Very **__handsomely.'_

* * *

A tall young man looked out his balcony window sadly, studying the dark horizon. It was a beautiful night, one where he would normally be out studying the stars with a zeal that baffled his friends. Tonight though, he couldn't bring himself to even walk outside. The stars were telling of tragedies, secrets hidden under their twinkling lights. "Valkyrie…" he murmured quietly, resting his forehead against the cold pane of glass as he closed his eyes. "Where are you? Why did you leave us behind?"

"Daddy?"

Neil Davis spun at the question, twisting around so fast that his foot got tangled in the curtain he had just let go of. With a groan he fell onto the tiled floor of the kitchen, his face stopping his fall roughly. He laid there in a stunned stupor for a few moments until insistent pushing at his shoulder brought his attention back at hand. With a weak chuckle, he lifted his head up to see that his daughter was his assailant. "Ouch?"

"Daddy!" the little girl exclaimed loudly as she jumped onto his neck, her small arms practically choking him. When he didn't answer her right away, she squeezed his neck. "Dada?"

Neil was silent for a minute, except when he released a pained groan-like choke at her actions, before he began to pick himself up. With a well-hidden wince, he gently extracted the toddler's vise-like grip and laughed genuinely. "You act just like your mother, Rose. I think I'm going to be in big trouble later on."

As he shifted the 21-month old toddler into his lap, she looked up at him curiously, not understanding what he meant. He laughed again before gently kissing her on the forehead. "Yes, Rose. I'm just fine." She rose her eyebrows in reply, showing she didn't believe him in the slightest, and his smile wilted just a little. "All right, you got me. My chin hurts a little." he admitted sheepishly, rubbing the offended area.

The girl nodded sagely, like she knew that was the problem all along, and unsteadily tried to balance on his crossed-legged lap before kissing his chin. She studied the area before looking up at him so seriously that Neil had to blink for a moment. "'O'ays?"

His eyes softened as he nodded. "Yeah, all better now Rose. Thank you." He swept her up in a big hug before standing and walking further into the living area. As he seated himself and Rose --who opted to remain on his lap-- on the couch, he grabbed the remote and began flipping through the TV guide. A few channels later, however, he stopped and looked down with a raised eyebrow. "Hey, what are you doing up? It is past your bed time young lady. You were asleep when I checked up on you a little bit ago."

The toddler sheepishly looked up at him with shining green eyes --so much like her mother's eyes-- and smiled. "As'eep." she stated, pointing to her pink long-sleeved pajama top and matching bottoms, before frowning. "But Daddy sad. 'elp Daddy." That said she curled up further into his lap, leaning her head against his red T-shirt-clad stomach and closing her eyes with a yawn. Neil smiled when he realized she had effectively ended the conversation before he could say anything in reply.

With an amused shake of his head, he wrapped his arm around her small body and decided it was all right to let her sleep where she was. With a yawn of his own, he idly went back to his previous channel surfing, hoping to catch the news. Five minutes later the remote laid abandoned in his limp hand and his head leaning against the back of the couch. Two sets of snores erupted throughout the apartment a few minutes later.

* * *

When Darien woke up from his unplanned nap it was to Motoki quietly entering the room again. In his half-asleep stupor he could only silently watch as the blonde practically tiptoed his way into the room. It wasn't anything Darien didn't expect; it just proved that Motoki knew _everyone _was asleep. What the half-asleep man didn't expect was the russet-haired woman that was quietly following the arcade worker as well.

The woman, kind and late middle-aged looking, was nervously wringing her fingers at the hem of an expensive looking gray suit but was nonetheless completely silent as she followed Motoki through the door. As she passed the threshold she looked around, obviously in curiosity, before catching Darien's own inquisitive look. She blinked at him in surprise before smiling in a way that instantly shook the man from his sleepy stupor.

As Darien tensed up in preparation for the unknown, a slight movement across his chin reminded him of his current situation. Looking down, he was meet with the sight of a mass of blonde hair and absolutely nothing else. After a second he smiled ruefully, immensely glad none of it had gone into his mouth, and tried to ease away from his companion. He'd barely managed to move a muscle though, before Serena moaned softly and snuggled closer to his neck.

When she was seemingly situated again, she sighed happily and he rolled his eyes in reply. He couldn't deny there was an amused smile tugging at his lips though. His shook his head, trying to figure out how to get up without waking the blonde, before deciding it wouldn't hurt to just ask. He leaned as close to her ear as he dared and whispered, "Let me go, Odango." He held his breath and waited, watching as she wrinkled her nose and snuggled closer yet again. With a sigh, he quietly added, "Please, Serena."

Those were the magic words. Serena shifted with another moan and released the death-grip Darien had just noticed that she'd had on his shirt. With a smirk at the notion the girl had actually listened to him in her sleep, _especially _since it was so unheard of when she was awake, he carefully stood up with the blonde girl in his arms still.

After he eased her back into the chair Serena, no doubt sensing the change, began wiggling around. In reply, he winced and paused in the middle of slipping off his green jacket, hoping she wasn't going to wake up. She badly needed to sleep and this was sure to be the only sleep she allowed herself to have for a while. When Serena ended up just crinkling her brow before settling down, Darien breathed a sigh of relief and placed the green garment over her. He took a minute to eye her critically before affirming she _was _going to stay asleep and seemed comfortable enough again. With a shake of his head, he headed toward his friend and the russet-haired woman to join the conversation, arriving just in time for Motoki's quiet reassurance that the man was indeed okay.

"But," the woman whispered back just as quietly. "There is a large knot right there on the side of his head. And, my goodness, his lip looks split! Are you sure I shouldn't take him to the hospital?"

Motoki studiously hid his blanch at the mention of the split lip by taking a closer look at the man. To be honest he'd completely forgotten about it; that's what thoughts of blackmail and money did he supposed. He _really _hoped it wasn't split though because if it was, the woman would no doubt go to the hospital and then there was a _good _possibility of her calling the police afterwards. _'My dear sister better pay me back for this.' _

"It's not split, Mrs. Taiko. Just swollen. Thankfully." he reported a few moments later, feeling as relieved as the woman looked. "It will be fine tomorrow but tender for the next few days. Be sure to put ice on it tonight to keep the swelling down and I promise you, the knot will go away soon. As I told you, my sleeping friend over there looked at Mr. Taiko to ensure he wasn't in need of a medic. He's in pre-Med so I give you my word that Mr. Taiko is fine."

Darien's eyebrows rose, spotting the lie instantly. Motoki knew as well as he did that he'd just thought the whole incident was funny. And …odd to say the least. _'I mean, sure, the man had been injured and I was concerned, but I was more preoccupied with the fact that Minako had actually hit him in the first place. Then everything else happened so fast and the man didn't even cross my mind again until I saw him on the couch. At least now I know why Minako _did _hit him; it makes sense too. If Serena is Sailor Moon, and Rei is Mars, and Makoto is -__**was**__- Jupiter,' _he winced momentarily,_ 'then everyone else has to be a Senshi as well. It is too much of a coincidence for them _not _to be. Which means Ami is Mercury and Minako is Venus without a doubt. Minako was rushing to the battle, resulting in the chaos she caused and her short temper. What I don't understand, though, is why she didn't drag Odango to the battle with her.' _

As Darien pondered this new thought, Mrs. Taiko was finally taking Motoki's words to heart about her husband being okay. But, before she could say anything else, her husband moaned in pain and his eyes flew open. She had to smile in relief as she heard his mumbles about the brightness of the artificial lights overhead.

The grey-haired gentlemen eased his tired eyes open and did a quick survey of the decidedly unfamiliar room. He first spotted Motoki who was trying to smile at him in reassure, then Darien whose sharp eyes were studying him, then at last he spotted his beaming wife. He instantly focused on the familiar face. "What happened? Where am I, dear? Who are these boys?"

The woman gently eased her husband up and sat down next to him. "You had a little spill on the sidewalk, honey. In front of the Crown Arcade." she said gently before looking up and gesturing toward Darien and Motoki. "These two nice young men here helped you and brought you in."

Motoki nodded absently in greeting before truly listening at the woman's words. When he looked behind him and saw Darien standing only a few feet away, he smiled sheepishly and walked up to him. "Sorry, Dare. I didn't mean to wake you."

Darien shook himself out of his thoughts, already resigning himself to a sleepless night filled with them, as his friend came to stand beside him. He gave a small smile in reply. "It's fine, Motoki; I was waking up anyways. Besides, I never meant to fall asleep in the first place. Sorry about that."

"It's no big deal, I could tell you were tired. Nothing happened besides me getting a hold of our little patient's wife in any case. After that, I came in here and saw you were asleep so I just went back to the main room. I checked on all you guys a few times but no one ever woke up." Motoki stated matter-of-factually.

Darien gave a little yawn at the reminder of his nap. "At least we know the man will be in good hands from now on." He chuckled and nodded his head toward the couple, drawing Motoki's attention back to them as well.

The blonde man laughed quietly, watching as the man moaned piteously and leaned his head on his wife's shoulder. In response she was fretting over him worriedly, touching the knot on his head and wincing as he groaned again. But both young men could see the little smile that was in the man's eyes; he just wanted attention from his wife it seemed. "You think we should give them some privacy?" Motoki murmured.

"More than likely." Darien answered after a moment as he adverted his eyes, realizing he was staring at a private moment. "But I'm not leaving Odango back here by herself. And I refuse to move her. She needs to sleep."

Motoki smiled and began to chuckle at the protectiveness in his friend's voice. But as Darien sharply looked out of the corner of his eye and Motoki found himself receiving a blue-eyed glare, he quickly coughed to disguise the sound. "The dust back here is sure getting to me." he commented innocently with another slight cough. "I guess it's about time to tidy up."

The black-haired man smirked, shaking his head in amusement at Motoki's overly bright grin. "If I hadn't known you so well Motoki, I would have believed you. Maybe you should brush up on those lying techniques of yours. At least around me."

Motoki was tempted to burst out laughing, he really was. Darien had no idea that the door to a secret basement room was only a mere feet away. By a sheer stroke of luck he was able to look thoughtful and give the man a slow, considering nod. "You're probably right. But I am content with how I am for now." _'Ah. If only you knew, Darien. If only you knew.' _

"Glad to hear it." Darien's smirk grew, despite the voice in the back of his mind telling him Motoki _was _hiding something. He didn't doubt it; he just couldn't let Motoki know he was getting suspicious about him. His mind flashed to the odd conversation the arcade worker had had with Minako. Who he now knew was a Senshi. _'There __**is **__a reason he looked so defensive when I laughed earlier but I just don't know what it is.'_

"Motoki?" Both men snapped their attention to see Mrs. Taiko lift her head up carefully, her husband leaning against her with his eyes closed now. "Are you sure you didn't recognize whoever did this? My husband doesn't remember who it was, just that she was female and very rude."

Before Darien had a chance to say anything, Motoki quickly shook his head no. "I'm sorry, Mrs. Taiko. I didn't recognize her. It all happened so fast and it was obvious she was in an emergency." he shrugged helplessly, looking apologetic. "I wish I did though."

Darien bit the inside of his cheek to keep himself from saying anything. If Motoki didn't want to tell on Minako then he won't say anything either. _'Now he's lying for her too though. I really need to figure out what's going on.' _He blinked cautiously as the russet-haired woman turned her attention to him. "How about you…?"

"Darien." he supplied helpfully with a shake of his own head. "And no, I didn't recognize her either."

"Oh, all right." she sighed, turning back to her husband and easing his head off her suit-covered shoulder. "I suppose we'll never know. Oh well. Do you feel well enough to get up, John?"

The man nodded, swinging his loafer-clad feet onto the ground. He took a visible pause to stop the spinning of his head at the quick movement before managing to grip the armrest of the couch and pull himself up. "Yes. I'm feeling better by the second, Mara."

"Good. We should get you home then." She stood up herself and took a second to make sure her husband was balanced before giggling at a softly spoken comment. With a shake of her head, she flashed her smile toward the two men waiting on the sidelines and walked over. "Thank you both so much for caring for my husband. And for calling me. I had been so worried with all kinds of horrific scenarios running through my mind."

Darien looked down in guilt, knowing he _hadn't _cared for the man. Motoki took the thanks in stride though, smiling gently at the woman. "Of course, Mrs. Taiko. It was the least we could do. We understand the fear of not knowing about a loved one's safety." Motoki smirked as he watched Darien out of the corner of his eye. _'They do say a picture is worth a thousand words.'_

"Of course, of course." the woman said happily, drawing the blonde's attention back to her. Darien was still standing there and listening uneasily; he knew the woman's next words. "Can I do anything to repay you? We are in your debt."

It was Motoki's turn to feel guilty and he winced slightly. _'I don't think you can -or _should_- be indebted to the brother of the attacker.'_ He shook his head forcefully. "There's no need at all to repay us. We're just relieved to see that Mr. Taiko is all right." The arcade worker gestured to the man and saw that he was looking intently at the wall, his brow furrowing in deep concentration. "Mr. Taiko…?" he inquired hesitantly.

"She was blonde!" Mr. Taiko suddenly cried out before quickly grabbing his forehead. "Ow. Too loud." He nonetheless continued on, looking over at his wife eagerly. "That rude woman had blonde hair. Tons of it!"

Darien paled, noticing how the woman's attention riveted toward where she had seen Serena on the armchair. He could only imagine what the woman was thinking as she observed Serena. _'Blonde woman in the back room. Check. Said woman had tons of blonde hair. Check. Woman looked rumpled, as if she was in the incident. Check. Both young men looked nervous now. Check.'_ he added as he glanced toward Motoki to see a slight panicked look in the blonde's eyes. He didn't need a mirror to know he looked just as panicked, not to mention guilty still.

Darien looked back at Mrs. Taiko only to flinch seconds later when he saw that her gaze was now seated on him; she did _not _look happy. He opened his mouth to say something but she quickly walked back toward her husband, all smiles again. "John, we really should get home. It is getting late and your lip needs to be iced. Motoki, could you please help my husband to my car? It's parked right in front of the entrance. Dark-blue BMW."

Motoki looked ready to protest, eager to defend his friends, but the woman narrowed her eyes warningly. "Of course, ma'am." he stated, his lips turning into a tight, thin line. He slowly walked toward her, watching as she fished through her handbag for her keys. "It would be my pleasure to help." he added as he grabbed the offered keys a little more roughly than was needed.

The woman nodded stiffly, twisting back to her husband who stood dizzily beside her. "All right now, honey. Motoki will help you get into the car. I'll be there shortly. I'd just like a word with Darien here first."

The man smiled, leaning up to kiss his wife's cheek. "Of course, of course. Take your time. I'll be in the backseat. A short nap will do wonders for me, I believe." He flashed his wife another smile before turning toward Motoki. He frowned at the blonde's sour look. "Don't look at my wife like that, boy. And where's my briefcase?"

Motoki looked startled before he chuckled genuinely at the older man. "Forgive me, sir. I am feeling very tired myself." He quickly grabbed the man's briefcase where it had been left on the floor beside the couch. "Now, let's get you in that car of yours. I don't want you to be on your feet longer than necessary."

"I'll be there in a second!" Mrs. Taiko called cheerfully as she watched the two men walked away. When she was sure they were well into the main room, she sent Darien a piercing look. "I would like an explanation." she insisted, gesturing toward the unconscious Serena.

"Serena is not who hurt your husband." Darien insisted just as fiercely. "She was with us when the accident happened, yes, but she helped collect his belongings and bring them in as Motoki and I were bringing him back here. She was just as worried and concerned as we were."

"Then why do you look so guilty?" Mrs. Taiko demanded, placing one of her hands on her hip. "It makes me believe you are lying to protect this girl. And if that is the case, I will have to notify the police of an assault toward my husband. I will not stand for being fooled in such a manner."

Darien's brow creased in anger. _'She sure changed emotions fast didn't she?'_ He was silent, meeting the woman's eyes brown eyes. She met his stone-like gaze steadily so he looked toward Serena and sighed. Seconds later, he quietly admitted he hadn't examined Mr. Taiko to check to see if he needed to go to the hospital.

The woman blinked her eyes a few times, not quite expecting that information. "That's all? Then why did Motoki--?" She trailed off, sending a confused frown in the direction the men had left in.

Darien ran a hand through his hair tiredly. "Motoki just wanted to ease your fears. I watched as he examined your husband but I was too worried about Serena to even think to help. I know that Motoki was trained in basic first-aid, though, and knows the signs of every common injury so if he says Mr. Taiko is fine, then he is. I assume Motoki believed if _you _thought that someone who's in a few pre-Med classes checked your husband, then you wouldn't have to worry as much."

Mrs. Taiko was quiet for a moment as she studied Darien and his sincerity. When she was satisfied that what she saw was genuine, she nodded slowly. "Fine. I believe you. But if you are lying to me about that girl--" she let the threat hang in the air between them and Darien could almost imagine the refined woman shaking her fist in his face. He suppressed a smile and looked back at Serena.

He caught her in mid-turn as she wiggled to face the back of the armchair. When she was comfortable she curled up upon her body, the movement making his jacket slip off her body. With her school uniform on and her mass of blonde hair framing the chair and ground, she looked the picture of innocence. Darien looked out the corner of his to see Mrs. Taiko's face soften drastically. She blew out a deep breath seconds later. "Oh, _what _am I saying? That girl looks like the sweetest person in the universe. If she had been the one to injure my husband, she probably would have been apologizing to me before I even got out of my car. Not to mention she more than likely would have called me personally instead of having Motoki be the one to."

Darien smirked, silently marveling at Serena's ability to defend herself in her sleep. "Rest assured, Mrs. Taiko." Darien commented as he absently studied the girl. "If Serena had been the one to injure your husband, she would have personally brought him to the hospital; scoured the city in search of you; and once you had been found -and she no doubt would not stop until you _were_- she would have apologized until she was blue in the face. Then she would buy so many apology gifts you could fill an entire hospital wing."

The woman blinked at Darien's firm words, a slight smile tugging at her mouth at the picture they created. _'He is completely serious too.' _She couldn't help but believe him; the girl looked too innocent to injure anyone, at least not without profusely apologizing to everyone wronged. She couldn't help but think he was exaggerating but, either way, he sounded like he knew what he was speaking of. "All right then. I believe I owe you and the girl an apology. Forgive me, I am simply very protective of my husband lately."

Darien rose an eyebrow and turned his head to look at Mrs. Taiko. "An apology isn't necessary but I accept it all the same. I apologize for what has happened as well. I should have readily admitted that I didn't examine your husband."

The russet-haired woman nodded, slightly marveling at how mature the young male was being. _'He didn't even ask why I was so protective of my husband!'_ "Thank you." There was a long pause as she pondered Darien's unexpected maturity and the way he was staring at the girl before she finally spoke. "Why is… Serena, you said?… why is she back here? I had thought she was asleep at first but you are not acting like she is…" She trailed off grimacing. "Forgive me. I am being far too nosy."

Darien's eyes hardened in protectiveness as he crossed his arms over his chest. But when he tilted his head to look at her again, he was smiling slightly. "It's all right. I guess I deserve it for lying, or rather going along with what I knew was a lie. Serena fainted actually. As she was carrying in your husband's belongings, she was distracted by the footage of the youma battle that was playing on the television. She was …distraught over the death of Sailor Jupiter."

The woman frowned in reminder, her eyes sad. "Yes. I heard about it as well. It is unfortunate; they are all such brave and honorable women. I cannot help but feel horrible for them. The blonde one, you know the one that wears orange? What is her name?" she murmured, tapping her chin absently.

"Sailor Venus." provided Darien just as quietly. He kept a close watch on Serena and looked for any signs of her awakening. This wasn't a conversation she should wake up to; it would only serve to make her faint again or have something worse happen.

"That's right," Mrs. Taiko nodded thankfully. "That poor woman was so upset. The reporter said that after the last those dreadful monsters were destroyed, she stayed there for almost an hour. Even after the others left. She just stayed there, crying and punching the ground over and over. Then she just, well, disappeared after that."

"I'm sure she just went to grieve in her own way. Away from the cameras." Darien replied, before something occurred to him. _'An hour?'_ He searched the room for a clock but with only a few quick glances determined that there wasn't one in sight. However a gleam did inform him that Mrs. Taiko was wearing a silver wristwatch. With slight hesitation, he asked for the time.

"Hmm?" she mumbled before flipping her wrist and looking at the silver accessory. "It's almost eight o'clock now."

The blue-eyed man grimaced as he looked back at Serena. _'When did it get so late? You should be home by now Odango. I guess I'll just have to take you. Hopefully your father lets me out of the car before he attacks.'_ He gave a smirk, imagining how her father would react when he carried her up the steps; it wasn't a pretty thought. _'I'll have to have a hard hat or something on. If I'm lucky you'll wake up before it comes to that so I could escape.'_

"Well, I believe it's time for me to get going. _Darien_." Mrs. Taiko called, making sure she had the man's attention. When he turned to her, she smiled gratefully. "I do sincerely thank you. Even if you did not do all that Motoki said you did, you still helped carry my husband back here. You could have easily left him on the sidewalk and walked away."

Darien smiled uneasily, still thinking he didn't deserve any gratitude. "You are welcome, Mrs. Taiko and I apologize again for deceiving you. Just to let you know though, I would never leave someone lying on the street like that. It isn't right to leave someone in need if you can help."

Mrs. Taiko smiled back. "And I am glad to hear it. Well, I believe this is as good a time as any to take my leave. Have a nice night, Darien. And I do hope your girlfriend feels better." Darien choked, making her laugh. "Oh, well, I guess she isn't your girlfriend then. Forgive me for assuming but I do wish her better all the same."

Darien ran a hand through his hair, an embarrassed flush on his cheeks. _'Not her too. What's -or rather- _who's _next?'_ "No she isn't. But I will inform her of your well wishes in any case. Thank you. I hope your husband feels better as well. Good night to both of you and your husband, Mrs. Taiko."

The woman continued to giggle, even as she walked out of the door with a short wave. Once she was out of sight Darien shook his head and groaned. "What am I going to do with you, Odango? I think it's safe to say this is your influence. First that old lady and now Mrs. Taiko. I guess I should be glad that she didn't think I was a pervert too. Then again, if you were awake I'm sure you would have hinted at me being one. You _are _a devious girl."

With a smirk and chuckle, Darien picked up his jacket from the floor and shook it lightly. Just as he pulled it through his arms, he noticed a spot of blood on Serena's back. The smirk faded and he sucked in a sharp breath. _'That's right where that slash was.' _He swore as he quickly bent down to Serena's level and lifted her shirt. There were a few thin trails of blood trailing down her back, all stemming from the middle of the slash that had reopened. With a grimace, the black-haired man gingerly touched her skin and in reply she shifted, curling upon herself more. Another thin trail of blood immediately formed. _'Damn it.'_

"Uh… Darien? What in the world are you doing?"

Darien flinched, feeling guilty all over again, and dropped the shirt. He knew Motoki had already seen it though so he turned with a carefully blank stare. The arcade worker was standing only a few feet away with a baffled expression. "Umm… did I interrupt something?" Darien's expression darkened more than usual and Motoki instantly placed his hands up in a placating gesture and took a visible step back. "I-I didn't mean it like that of course." he replied with nervous laugh. "What I meant was-- was, uh, what's wrong with Serena?"

"She reopened the wound on her back. Where's that first-aid kit of yours?" Darien was short with his words, not bothering to elaborate even though Motoki had immediately opened his mouth at the word 'wound' with a worried look in his eyes. "Is it behind the counter still?"

Motoki frowned, shaking his head. "No. I'm out of _literally_ everything. I told you this place was turning into an infir--"

Darien easily ignored his friend after he learned what he needed to know. He continued to crouch beside Serena and, with hesitation now that he had an audience, lifted the hem of her shirt again to study the wound closer. _'It _is _healed better like she said it was. But the stitches are being pulled with all her moving; I won't be able to take her home like this. It'll need to be bandaged again before she can be moved. But since Motoki doesn't have anything, the closest place to get what I need is… my apartment. I'll just have to get some things from there I guess.'_

Darien looked up and over at the blonde man looming over him. He opened his mouth to tell Motoki of his planning but stopped short when he noticed the scowl on the man's face and the green-eyed glare directed at him. "What's that look for?"

The scowled deepened more than Darien thought was possible, on Motoki's face at least. "Aren't you going to answer me?" When Darien continued to stare at him, lifting an eyebrow in curiosity, Motoki began to lose his patience. "Why wasn't I told of Serena's injury? And how the _hell _did she get it anyways!?" he yelled out.

The dark-haired man's eyes narrowed at the memory of _how _Serena got the injury and glanced at her back where streams of blood were appearing more as she moaned and shifted more. With a scowl of his own at the tone Motoki unconsciously took and the memories he dug up, Darien finally stood up. "I don't really see any reason you would have _had _to know about it."

Motoki bristled at his friend's words and instinctively took a step forward. He glowered as he gestured toward the unconscious girl with one of his hands. "I think I have every right to know what happens to Serena!"

Darien smirked at Motoki's surly tone, not even noticing that he'd taken a step into the man's view of Serena. Subconsciously he knew that both her back and injury were too exposed for his liking; it was --like the reason Serena fainted-- a private matter and Motoki had no right to know anything about it. "Last time I checked, Motoki, you weren't her father."

"Well … you damn well aren't her father either!" Motoki retorted after a slight pause. A voice in the back of his head was yelling at him to stop when Darien was this protective and this defensive but he couldn't. The words flowed out of his mouth without thought. "I don't see why you knew and I didn't. Hell, she _likes _me better than you. _I _don't insult her and put her down every damn minute of every _damn _day! I think that means I have more of a right to know than you do! So tell me now!"

Darien's eyes narrowed at the harsh words, burning a deeper blue. "Maybe she does like you better, maybe she doesn't. But either way you still haven't told me a good reason why you _had _to know, Motoki. You're just sounding like a little kid who isn't getting what he wants right now."

Motoki's face turned red, whether in anger or embarrassment Darien couldn't bring himself to care right now, and he closed his mouth with a snap. The dark-haired man watched the other man take a deep breath, let it out, open his mouth, snap it shut, and continue the process a few more times. After a few moments, Motoki finally composed himself enough to say, "Maybe I _am _sounding like a spoiled little kid. But that still doesn't mean I don't have a right to know what happens to my _friend!_"

Darien crossed his arms over his chest. "Do you want to know what happened?" He watched as the man's jaw twitched as he nodded stiffly. "Odango was hurt. I helped her. End of story." Motoki opened his mouth again and Darien swiftly cut him off. "No. I am not going to explain. This is personal and in no way does it involve _you _knowing. If you _still _want to know when Serena wakes up, you can ask her. And if she _wants _to answer, then you will find out what happened but if she _doesn't_, leave her be and respect her privacy."

Motoki could still feel his anger just under the surface but was calmed somewhat by the man's words. It was pointless getting so angry for not being told, he realized; Darien was a tight-lipped person by nature. "Fine. But I _will _ask her when she wakes up. You can't stop me from doing that." The blonde watched Darien nod and turn back to Serena. Despite his frustration, Motoki's lips twitched in amusement when the man bent over and tugged Serena's shirt back to its proper place.

But his slight amusement was wiped off his face when Darien released a tired sigh. He groaned and rubbed his hands down his face irritably. He peered through his fingers to see his friend eyeing Serena's material-covered back warily. "What _now_?"

Darien smirked slightly in reply to Motoki's exasperated tone and glanced over his shoulder. "I'm going to my apartment to get some medical supplies since you don't have any here. It wouldn't be wise to let Serena injure herself worse as I'm taking her home." He frowned in thought. "I also don't want her parents to worry about her more than necessary, so the bandages will ensure she won't be bleeding noticeably through her shirt. And, when I do take Odango home, I'm borrowing _your _car because I have my motorcycle with me today."

"Are you asking or telling me?" Motoki practically growled as he placed his hands on his hips in irritation. _'Ugh. Endymion's personality is far more closer to the surface than mine is right now. I don't know if I should be glad it is or not though. We only came across each other a few times and I only saw him like this once. From what I vaguely recall, he was pretty unreasonable. Just like he is now.'_

"Telling you." Darien's smirk returned larger than before. "Just like I'm telling you to keep an eye on her until I get back and to not move her. Moving her will just make the injury worse than it is. And I'm also telling you to not take her to the hospital. No matter what, you can _not _take her to the hospital."

Motoki crossed his arms over his chest, raising his eyebrows in surprise and curiosity. _'Why no hospital?' _"I hate how you just assume things, Darien."

Darien shrugged uncaringly. "I know. I hate it when you assume things too. I know you're going to listen to me though. You care too much about Serena and her welfare _not _to."

There was no reply because they both knew it was true; Serena was a good friend. Instead of speaking, Motoki watched Darien take off his green jacket and place it over the girl in a makeshift blanket, even tucking it around her a bit. After that was done the dark-haired man reached out and felt for her pulse, more than likely to make sure it was steady.

"All right. I better get going." Darien said a few seconds later but Motoki had a feeling the man was telling himself (and perhaps Serena) more than he was being told. Darien reached his hand out toward Serena's head before quickly snatching it back and straightening up. Motoki smiled as he remembered the photos he had taken. _'I guess I really shouldn't get too mad at him. I do have something over him right now.'_

"You _will _watch her, right?" Darien asked, glancing over his shoulder as he walked to the door, "And not move her? I _am _borrowing your car still, no matter what. I refuse to try to take an unconscious Serena on my bike. And _no _hospitals; Serena _cannot _be taken to a hospital. Understand me?" He asked this so seriously that Motoki stopped in his tracks as he followed Darien. He knew better than to question him now though; it would only be a waste of time.

Darien frowned at Motoki's curious look. _'I would tell you, Motoki, but I can't. I just hope you know how serious I am right now. We can't have Odango go to the hospital with all those injuries on her body. Besides that, there's the fact she's Sailor Moon. Her body might have some changes that aren't quite normal. I don't want her singled out in that place. I already know what that feels like and I refuse to let her go through that if I can help it.'_

"Yeah, yeah Darien. I understand. Just hurry up already." Motoki said, walking up to the brooding man. When Darien didn't respond, the blonde grabbed a hold of his T-shirt and began pulling him out. "Come on. I don't want her homicidal father coming here and finding her like this. At least not without you here."

"Sure, make the man come after me. Glad to see you're such a good friend." Darien smiled though, letting himself be pulled along. He did a quick check of his pockets to make sure he had his wallet and keys before extracting himself out of the arcade worker's grip. "Be back as soon as I can!"

* * *

Neil really couldn't understand the reason anyone would want a phone. _'They were loud, interrupted you at the most inconvenient of times, and most importantly'_, he thought groggily as he reached out a blind hand, _'they woke you up from nice dreams.'_ With a few bleary eye blinks to make sure that he was holding a phone --he had tried to answer a cup and a shoe before-- Neil hit 'talk' on his cordless device. "Huh?"

He blinked again as he registered tired chuckling on the other end. "_What?_" This time it came out in a yawn, so the word was barely tangible. Fortunately for Neil, his caller knew him well and had had this happen many times in the past. He understood groggy-Nephrite-speak perfectly.

"Nothing, Nephrite." the voice answered with another weak chuckle. "Just enjoying your phone etiquette. Like always."

"Who--?" The dark-haired man stuttered, instantly becoming alert. He absently tightened his arm around the still-sleeping-in-his-lap Rose and peered around his apartment with rapidly clearing eyes. When he saw nothing out of the ordinary he turned his attention back to the phone. "Who the hell is this?"

The response was weary. "It's me, Nephrite. Commander. Don't worry, the line is secure." There was a squeak as Artemis leaned back in his chair, opening his mouth with a silent yawn. He glanced at his glowing watch disdainfully. _'When was the last time I slept again? Was it yesterday or the day before?'_

"Commander?" Neil questioned, briefly pulling away and looking at the phone in confusion. He scowled then, angry, and pressed the phone back to his ear. "Why are you calling me? I'm on leave, _remember?_ I refuse to go on some low-profile, hideout for eleven months for _nothing_ mission. Not now and _especially _not while I have a toddler. I absolutely refuse to do that again."

"Look, I said I was sorry. All right?" the man on the other end grumbled. "I thought, well, I thought I had been given a good lead. You can't fault me for that."

"I was right out of training, you idiot!" Neil hissed out, half-angry half-trying not to wake Rose. "Barely eighteen years old. You don't give that kind of mission to a guy who hasn't had any kind of field experience without superiors a two days' hike or radio call away! _And _you forced me to cut my hair! You're damn lucky I was reunited with Valkyrie on that mission otherwise I would never have talked to you again!"

"I refuse to discuss this anymore. I said I was sorry." Artemis insisted firmly with a shake of his head. "Hmm. So how _is _Rose doing? She's almost… what? Two now, right?"

The younger man rose an eyebrow at the change in conversation, glancing down at the girl in question. "Yeah. Three more months away in fact. In February."

"That's right. She sure is growing fast isn't she?" Artemis mused. "It seems like it was just yesterday she was born. Both Valkyrie and her were so beautiful. You could certainly see who she would favor once you laid eyes on them."

Neil smiled dreamily as he remembered his daughter's birth. "Yeah… they were both gorgeous that day." As said daughter shifted in his lap, he blinked and came out of the happier memories. "What are you calling about Commander, if it's not a mission?" The line was so silent that he had to look to make sure the call was still going before questioning the man again.

Artemis blew out a deep breath. "I can do this, I can do this." he chanted quietly to himself, forcing Neil to stifle an amused, but bewildered, chuckle. "Do you remember when you asked for your leave? How you said that Valkyrie just vanished on you and Rose one day out of the blue?"

The man swallowed thickly, releasing his hand from Rose's back to run through his short hair nervously. "Y-yeah." he whispered shakily before clearing his throat. That did nothing to clear the roughness away though, so he continued on. "I just woke up one day and she wasn't there. I remember being so panicked, thinking she had taken Rose and left because she remembered something negative about me or whatever. But Rose was still there and so were all our things. Only _she _was gone, just Valkyrie herself."

Artemis smiled sadly, closing his eyes against the pain of what he had learned. "After that you initially believed her parents were behind her disappearance, right?"

"Well, yeah." The man answered, glaring at the memory of the couple. "They had been so mad when I asked her to marry me. I was this nobody in their eyes that had come along and swept their eighteen year-old college-bound daughter off her feet. Taking away all the possibilities of a future that involved her being this high-price, snooty lawyer to follow in their family name. It was even worse when they found out about Rose. But we were both eighteen, in love, remembering our past lives like… like, well, lightening."

Artemis chuckled along with Neil. "Yes. Lightening is a good word for you two." Artemis sighed then, fighting the desire to hang up the phone while they were both still on happier terms. "Well, I can officially tell you her parents didn't just spirit away Valkyrie like they said they did."

"Huh?" Neil's eyes widened incredulously and he leaned forward a bit until he remembered his sleeping child. With a quick glance down to make sure she was still snoozing, he hissed out, "What the hell? They told me --after two months of poking, prodding, and _threatening _I might add-- that they practically kidnapped her and sent her to some private university in Japan! That's why I'm here in the first place!"

"Well, she _has _been in Japan. Tokyo specifically." Artemis bit his bottom lip, listening to the man practically cheering on the other side. "But!" he called out, waiting for the other man to stop. "She hasn't been in some private college. She's been going to high school."

Neil was sure his jaw was somewhere lying on the ground. "W-what? _High _school? She's twenty-one years old for Terra's sake; she has already gone through that hell! What is she doing that for again!?" He calmed down as Rose began squirming in her sleep, reacting to his tone and -no doubt- his wild emotions too.

"She wasn't doing it by choice. She didn't know she already went through high school." Here Artemis winced, "She thought she was only sixteen." He had expected laughter, lots of it, but there was only an ominous pause that caused the white-haired man to close his eyes again.

"Wasn't? Didn't? _Thought_? Why are your sentences in past tense, Commander? Tell me you're just too tired to notice the difference." Nephrite; Artemis was positive this was Nephrite talking to him now. Not the pseudo twenty-one year-old father named Neil Davis that he had created. This was the real Nephrite who could practically name the constellation you were standing under without looking up at the sky; the one who had found his soul-mate before the others could even began to imagine what it would be like with them again; the one who's heart was going to break.

"No. I'm not. I'm sorry Nephrite." That was all Artemis could bring himself to say but he knew Nephrite would demand answers. He wasn't disappointed.

"What? No, no. She-- she _can't_… R-Rose." The man stumbled over his words in shock before taking a deep breath. "_How?_"

"She's been with the Senshi." Artemis admitted before he suddenly burst out his apology. "I hadn't thought it was really her. _Honest _to Terra and the Heavens, Nephrite, if I had known it was _really _her, I would have immediately told you. Rose needs her mother and you need your wife." Artemis could feel his own heart breaking as he listened to Nephrite harsh breathing.

"I believe you." Nephrite finally whispered as he fought against the overwhelming urge to cry and just hold the little girl in his arms forever. They were all that was left of their family now. "I know you would have. But I don't understand, why _didn't _you think it was her?"

"Because the woman who is Sailor Mars isn't Bellona." Artemis stated, rubbing the bridge of his nose in an attempt to force back his headache. "I-I don't know _who _she is because--" he faltered, remembering how only Zoisite had known and only then because he'd stumbled into her chamber. "Because, Bellona is _here_. At Headquarters. In a coma and has been for years."

Nephrite sucked in a sharp breath. "Coma? Does Jed--?"

"Yeah. Zoisite told him after they fought." Sensing the man's questions in what was surely a desperate attempt to distract himself from Valkyrie's death, Artemis elaborated. "Zoisite mistakenly told Jadeite that he had seen a woman who looked like Bellona but didn't _feel _like her. They exchanged words among other things and well, you know how Jadeite is." Nephrite gave a half-hearted snort of amusement. "Worse is," Artemis continued. "Since Kunzite's… well, you know …_deflection_, Zoisite has taken it upon himself to pick up the slack. He's not nearly as bad as pre-Áine Kunzite was but still…"

Nephrite finally gave a weak chuckle, causing Artemis to smile slightly. "Well, I can honesty say I'm glad to be away from those clowns right now."

"Actually…" drawled the older man, shaking his head in his own amusement. "Both Zoisite and Jadeite are there in Tokyo on a special mission concerning Endymion." he gave a strangled laugh as he remembered Nephrite didn't know anything about the latest developments. "Surprise? We found Endymion! He's in Tokyo!"

Nephrite frowned, raising an eyebrow in confusion. "Well, yeah. I know that. I just seen him not long ago."

"_**WHAT**__?" _Artemis was sure he had just given himself a minor heart attack. He clutched his chest, straining his ears to make sure no one was rushing toward his door like they normally would. _'Terra, those people are nosy. Even I'm not __**that **__bad.'_ When he was sure no one was listening outside the door he cleared his throat and tried again, "What in Terra are you talking about, Nephrite?"

"Uh… I am sort of, kind of, living next door to him?" the man commented sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah. Well, you know I've been in Tokyo but I never got a chance to tell you Endymion is my neighbor. Sorry. It's practically impossible to contact you without having active status and I ended up just giving up."

"Since _when?_"

"I ran into him a few days after I told you I was settled. So maybe a week or two after I got my oh-_so_-wonderful in-laws to tell me about Val." Nephrite cringed, wrapping his arm around Rose absently. "Listen, Commander--"

"I know Nephrite. I'm sorry." Artemis sighed, resisting the urge to bang his head on his desk over and over again. "I didn't call you to end up giving you an interrogation. I just… I wanted to tell you and say that I am sorry. I honestly thought she was just another imposter like Sailor Mars is."

Nephrite cleared his throat roughly, "How did she--?" He stopped, unable to say 'die'. It was too soon to even process it, let alone believe it. _'Terra, what kind of husband am I? I should have felt her death but I never did.'_

"A surprise attack apparently." Artemis exhaled nosily. "Our sensors over here had been going crazy but we couldn't figure out what was happening. Later we learned it was because the Dark Kingdom had sent out a horde of youmas. I would have contacted everyone in Tokyo; you know, Zoisite, Jadeite, and Cadeyrn but when we managed to figure out what the problem was, it was already over."

The Commander gave a frustrated sigh as he continued on. "We eventually hacked into some news footage to find out what really went on. That's when we learned only Sailors Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus fought. We think that was one of the factors that led to them being overpowered. Neither Sailor Moon nor Tuxedo Mask were there."

"Venus? _Caderyn?_ Since when have they been in Tokyo too?" Nephrite was baffled beyond belief. "And who the hell are Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask?"

Artemis rose his eyebrows incredulously. "Caderyn and Venus been there for a while but I won't get into that now. Have you honestly never heard of Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask, Nephrite?"

The man frowned in reply. "Commander, I didn't even know my own wife was a Senshi again. What do you think?" He sighed as he heard the confused sound Artemis uttered. "Look, I've only been here for three months and that whole time has been split between looking _after _Rose and looking _for _Val. Plus keeping the occasional eye on Darien to make sure he was still fairing well. I'm lucky if I have time to go grocery shopping. Do you really think I took time to keep track of the Senshi when I thought Val was in some college and not around them? This was one of few nights I've actually taken a break to watch the news and guess what, Commander? I feel asleep."

Artemis ran a hand through his hair, feeling guiltier by the second. He gave a weak chuckle. "Guess it's a good thing you're still getting a salary from Headquarters, huh?"

"You have no idea." Nephrite whispered as he looked down at his daughter before shaking his head tiredly. "So, are you going to catch me up on things? I feel so out of the loop."

"Well…" Artemis drawled again, yawning slightly. "None of this is really anything we should discuss over the phone. Let's just leave it as you have _many _things to catch up on, Nephrite. But I will tell you that I'm coming to Tokyo soon. I have some business with Darien."

_That _caught Nephrite's attention. Startled, he couldn't help but question the man. "Huh? Why, is something wrong him? Because he seemed fine to me but, you know, Endymion was always--"

"No, no." Artemis chuckled again, this time wholeheartedly. _'Same old Nephrite.'_ "There's nothing wrong with Darien." he frowned momentarily. "At least, physically there isn't."

"What's there besides physically? Emotionally? I could have told you that years ago." Nephrite laughed but quieted down when Rose's fluttered open. He held his breath as they closed again, a snore erupting soon after. _'I guess I _should _have taken her to her room. I'm getting pretty loud.'_

"No, no. Nothing like that." Artemis grumbled, bringing Nephrite back to the conversation. "He's going to be evaluated for his inheritance. Damn clause!"

Nephrite's eyes light in realization. "You're being that secretive lawyer again, aren't you?"

"_Uh_…" Artemis had never been in the habit of squeaking but he suddenly found himself doing so. "You know about that?"

"Yeah. You forget that you allowed me to look through the Record Room once upon a time. I saw a memento from your little attempt with school." Nephrite gave a sly smile as he began chuckling. "So… does Endymion know that that you're not really a lawyer?"

"I resent that." grumbled Artemis as he lied his head on the back of his chair. He caught sight of pealing paint on his ceiling and frowned. "I have a real, _legal _license to practice law!" Nephrite snorted. "And I think I happen to make an excellent lawyer. I have yet to lose a case!" Artemis continued on.

Nephrite smashed a hand over his mouth in a vain attempt to keep in his laughs. He was partially successful as only a few snorts managed to escape. "Yeah, because you haven't been in any!"

Artemis rolled his eyes but a smile still tugged at his lips. "Maybe you're right but I _am _still Darien's legal lawyer. Legally."

Nephrite chuckled a few more times before managing to calm down enough to string together a sentence. He eyed Rose's form before continuing at a quieter level. "So, why are you coming here exactly? I mean, _Darien _is the one being evaluated."

Artemis sighed as he went back to looking at the peeling paint. He should really fix that. "_Well. _There might be an anomaly, or maybe more, that I've caused in Darien's accounts over the years. Ones he doesn't know exist."

Nephrite frowned suspiciously, his ears perking up at the word 'years'. "What did you do?"

"But I mean, it's a _character _evaluation." Artemis continued to say, not hearing the other man's words. "At least, that's what they told me it was. As long as nobody looks a little _too _deeply into his accounts, they won't suspect anything. So we should be okay, it'll just be like the last time."

"Okay... So you're damage control then." Nephrite nodded to himself, letting Artemis keep his secrets for the time being. _'I can't help but wonder what he did though. At least I learned he's known where Endymion's been and the way he's talking it's been _years _for Terra's sake. The others aren't going to be happy with this.'_

"Mostly for myself, but yeah, I am. Plus I want to be there for Darien. For moral support and his legal representative, of course." Artemis sighed in exasperation. "Never mind all that though. I just wanted to let you know I'll be in town now that I know you're Darien's neighbor. I didn't want you to have a panic attack or something if you saw me at his apartment. That'd be too suspicious."

"Fine. I understand." Nephrite replied slowly, fighting back a yawn. "I'm guessing you don't want him to know about this conversation? And no casually mentioning you in any other conversations?"

"_Please_."

"Uh-huh. No problem."

"Oh!" Artemis paused, chewing on his lip idly. "I have some things that belong to you now. I'm going to bring them with me when I come to Tokyo. I really hope you will accept them for Rose's sake."

The darker-haired man instantly sobered up and unconsciously sat up a little straighter. "Val's stuff, I'm assuming. From who?"

"From her parents. Clothes and other possessions she left without. There are also some baby things for Rose. They ended up taking some of Valkyrie's old belongings out of storage, saying they were sorry about the way they handled things. Then they bought new things they thought you might need. It's their apology and a peace offering of sorts."

"Why do I have a feeling something is off about them?" Nephrite commented, mostly to himself. "I mean, the first few times I meant them they were at least friendly. But then-- No, it's probably just my imagination."

"No. It isn't." Artemis scowled, drumming his fingers against his desk agitatedly. "Let's just leave it as someone got to them first."

Nephrite blinked. "What? Someone got to them first? What's that supposed to mean?"

"I'll tell you when I know myself." Artemis stated with a grimace. "I just know what I saw and heard during my little discussion with them. I mean, if you ask me, it's pretty suspicious when they started answering questions like robots. Not to mention the minute I start pressing more complex questions, her mother suddenly bursts into tears and I'm being ushered out of the house. It was strange to say the least."

Nephrite's eyes flared wide in realization. "Y--you mean--"

Artemis frowned, cutting the general off before the man could begin jumping to conclusions. "I don't know what I mean. It could be nothing so don't go assuming things that might came back to bite you later on."

Nephrite nodded slowly, watching his daughter's rhythmic breathing to calm his emotions. "I understand. Anything else you want to tell me?"

"Just one more thing." Artemis ran an agitated hand through his hair. "…Nephrite, _please_, for your sake, don't watch the news tonight."

"It shows the battle, doesn't it?" the man asked rhetorically, smiling sadly. "You know I won't be able to avoid it now Commander. I _have _to know; for closure if nothing else. It still doesn't feel real, you know?"

Artemis groaned, leaning against his desk and placing a chin in his hand. "I know. I didn't expect anything less from you. … Just don't let Rose hear or see while you watch it, all right?"

"Didn't plan on it." Nephrite smiled slightly, looking down at the girl in question. "Valkyrie's spirit would kill me if I did. That's bad parenting technique after all."

Artemis chuckled weakly. "I have no doubts she would."

"So, I'll see you in a while then?"

"Yeah. I'll have everything for you." Artemis's mood deflated again. "Neph, I _am _sorry. If I had known, trust me, you would have had your happy ending."

"I know. I guess it was to much to ask for, huh?" he smiled again, albeit bitterly. Before Artemis could say anymore, Nephrite cut him off. "I'll see you in a while, Commander. Thank you and take care."

With that the heartbroken man quickly ended the call. Alone, save for his sleeping daughter and his torturous thoughts, he glanced down at the remote that had fallen to the floor. With a frown he tried to decide what to do or who to talk to. But, he didn't think anyone could help him right now. _'After all, what do you say to someone that has had their soul mate die, leaving them and their daughter behind?'_

Closing his eyes, he reached for the remote.

* * *

"Oh, man. What am I supposed to do?" Motoki mumbled to himself as he hovered over Serena's armchair. He had just returned moments ago after making sure one of the waiters could lock up for him tonight and found the girl in the midst of what looked like a convulsion. He had stopped, blinking his eyes rapidly as he tried to make sure he was really seeing the shaking girl on the chair.

It was only when she cried out long and loud that he'd snapped out of his disbelief. He'd raced toward her, seeing her struggling in Darien's jacket. The green material was still wrapped around her like it had been but now the long arms of it had somehow become entangled around her limbs. And by watching her legs and arms kick out, fighting against some unseen phantom force, he could guess how.

Coming back to the present, Motoki paled as she cried out in pain, curling her back upwards and away from the bottom of the chair. He winced in sympathy and glanced down at his watch. It had only been twenty-five minutes since Darien left and there was no telling how bad traffic was outside the arcade doors. _'It could be another half-hour before he can get back.'_

"Come on, Serena. It's all right." Motoki murmured as he leaned over and grabbed both of Serena's wrists to restrain her. There was no telling how bad she could injure herself while she was in this state and he certainly didn't want to face Darien's wrath if the man ever found out that he'd sat by idly as she beat herself up. _'Damn man _could _really become homicidal if he put his mind to it. Especially concerning Serena.' _He paused, giving a rueful smile as he realized there was a double meaning in his thoughts. _'Yeah, he sure would kill __**for **__her or he could very well kill __**her**__ if she made him mad enough'_. The smile quickly turned into a grimace as Serena's foot made contact with his stomach, breaking his thoughts. "_Ow_."

Serena began thrashing her head to and fro, moaning in pain. "Come on, Serena. You're fine. It will be okay, just calm down." He tried to placate her into relaxing but had to stop and duck his head to avoid a head-butt coming his way. Unfortunately for the mostly unconscious girl, she couldn't stop her momentum and ended up slamming her forehead against Motoki's forearm. As she groaned loudly from the pain and fell back against the arm of the chair, he practically hissed from the heat radiating off her skin. Carefully maneuvering both her wrists into one of his hands, he felt her forehead with the other. "Shit, this isn't good. Not good at _all_."

Her temperature was too high; much higher than what was safe for a human. Motoki glanced down at the girl and watched as tears began to run down her face before she suddenly sucked in a deep breath. His eyes widened in panic as her grip became slack in his arms. "Serena! Serena!" he punctuated each yell of her name with a slight tap on her cheek.

She didn't respond the first few times until Motoki slapped her a little more harshly than he intended to in his panic. Despite his slight guilt, he still sighed in relief when she opened her eyes, blurry and out of focus as they were. When Serena spotted him hovering over her, her eyes widened and she let out a series of whimpers and cries as she pushed herself against the back of the chair. Then, before Motoki could get a grip on the change in situation, her eyes fluttered closed again and she went limp.

"That's it." The arcade worker muttered irritably. "I don't care if Darien doesn't want you to go to the hospital. You need to no matter what he says. Something is _seriously _wrong." He gently lifted the girl in his arms, watching as she flinched and hissed when his hand brushed up against the wound on her back. Without another thought, he raced out of the room and through the main arcade, yelling out a "Taking Serena! _Hospital!_" to the confused questions echoing behind him.

When he carefully laid Serena in the back of his car and pulled away from her, Motoki became that much more worried. As she laid on her stomach to avoid injuring her back further, he could clearly see the blood that was beginning to seep through Darien's jacket. And, as he raced to the driver seat, he saw that there were decently-sized red spots on his hands and arms as well.

Motoki's mind went into overdrive as he heard Serena groan out in pain. He practically jumped into the driver seat before peeling out of the arcade parking lot, determined to get Serena treatment as soon as he could. _'The nearest hospital is Azabu General.'_ he thought to himself as he accelerated down the street. _'But traveling time will still be almost 35 minutes with traffic.'_

Like a sign from above he spotted an on-ramp to the freeway. With a relieved sigh he sped toward it, narrowly missing a motorcycle as it turned in the direction he was coming from. He grimaced as he glanced back to see Serena groan and move around in pain, her breaths coming in faster now. He tightened his hands around the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white. In a desperate attempt to distract himself, he began to make a mental list of things to tell the doctor once he reached the emergency room.

'_Escalated temperature. Short convulsion. Shivering. Injury on unknown origin on back. Heavy breathing. Shortness of breath. Fell unconscious approximately four hours ago.'_ It was about this time that Motoki glanced through his mirror and noticed the same motorcycle that he had cut off was following behind him. With narrowing eyes, the blonde took in what he could see. _'Black T-shirt with orange design. Blue jeans. Young male. Dark helmet. Blue and black motorcycle.' _It could only be one person: Darien.

Motoki almost pulled over to tell Darien what he was going to do when said man's words against taking Serena to the hospital flooded his ears. He had been so _vehement _against Serena going to the hospital and something told Motoki that his friend knew that was exactly where he was taking Serena. And he was _not _thrilled about it.

Hoping he was doing the right thing, Motoki changed lanes until he was in the middle and not tempted to pull over onto the shoulder. Then, with a deep breath to calm himself again, he took a moment to take in his position. All around him was fairly vacant but up ahead a mile or so was a cluster of vehicles he could easily get lost in. He glanced down, watching the speedometer hit 65 mph before looking back through his mirror. Darien was still faithfully trailing his car but was now steadily falling behind.

With a smirk that looked more like a grimace, Motoki focused ahead and watched as the cluster of vehicles become closer. _'Let the games begin, Darien. We'll see if you can stop me from taking Serena to the hospital.'_

* * *

Motoki was really, _really _regretting his actions now. With a worried frown, he glanced in his side mirror again to watch Darien's motorcycle as it weaved through the lanes. If he didn't know better, Motoki would think the man had a death wish. He was bypassing cars anyway he could: driving between two lanes, cars on both sides going at least 70 mph; swerving in front of vehicles so fast that two accidents almost happened when breaks were slammed down; then who knew what else Darien had done when Motoki wasn't watching. All the blonde knew was that there had been a lot of illegal maneuvers going on and a lot of cursing people sticking their heads out of their windows.

'_Damn it.' _He had honestly meant to simply lose Darien enough to allow Serena to get admitted to the hospital before he came barreling in. By then Darien would not have any right to pull an admitted patient out of the emergency room and Serena would be well-taken care of. But, of course, Motoki forgot one very important thing. This was _Darien _and when the man was dead set against something, there was _no _stopping his determination to make sure it _didn't _happen. And tonight, much to Motoki's horror, that included a possible death. _'I really should have expected something like this. He was too protective and defensive of Serena tonight for me to expect to be able to waltz out with her.'_

Motoki winced as he noticed he'd begun to slow down some time in his musings. _'Still ten minutes left. There's too much traffic out tonight.'_ He glared at that the dashboard clock, seeing it glaring back _9:23 _in glowing red letters. The blonde was just about to curse at it for mocking him when something pounded on his window. He released a startled shout and fearfully looked over to see Darien's motorcycle next to him, driving between the lanes. He couldn't stop his blanch. The man _did _have a death wish. "Oh. Shit."

With wide eyes, he glanced down at the speedometer which read 78 mph and looked back at the dark-haired an. With a gulp, Motoki peeked back at Serena, who was still groaning in pain, and rolled down his window with a quick push of a button. Darien's head turned toward him a second later and with a quick movement his visor was flipped open. The blonde sucked in a sharp breath as he got a good look at his friend's face. This wasn't completely Darien right now. _'Oh boy, I'm in big, __**big **__trouble now…'_

"Motoki, pull the hell over. _NOW!_" The perturbed man shouted over the rushing of wind. As Motoki continued to gape, he narrowed his eyes and glanced back up in front of him. Even after he righted his motorcycle and speed past the car that he'd been approaching, the blonde was still shell-shocked. "Damn it, _Cadeyrn!_ I order you to pull over this minute!"

Motoki closed his eyes before instantly snapping them open when he remembered what he was doing. His hands tightened around the wheel as his eyes involuntarily shifted back to Darien. The man was still keeping a steady speed besides him, right on the edge of the divider between his center lane and the left lane beside him. As if sensing the eyes studying him, Darien shifted his burning, _golden-blue _eyes back toward Motoki. As the eyes narrowed in a far worse way then he'd even seen before, Motoki sent a quick prayer to the Old Gods and rolled up his window.

Even through the window, he heard the man curse loudly. At the sound, the girl in the back seat whimpered, muttering "Darien." before crying out as she tried to turn over onto her back. Analyzing the car he was quickly approaching, Motoki's eyes fell onto a sign overhead as he past it. With a relieved smirk he quickly jerked around the car now in front of him, moving into the right lane and off of an off-ramp in a few short moments.

Looking out of his rearview window, Motoki watched Darien try in vain to reach the off-ramp. No doubt he was cursing up a storm; angry his opponent had sped off. But before the frustrated man could even make it into the right lane, he flew past the ramp. Tires screeched as he tried to slow down in time but it was already too late. Both men knew there wasn't another way off the freeway for three miles.

Motoki took a deep breath before releasing it shakily, looking away from the sight. Thanking anyone who would listen, he flew past a sign for Azabu General Hospital that read 'One Block Ahead' and made his way into the hospital parking lot. He had gotten a lucky break, an _unbelievably _lucky break, and couldn't waste it by dawdling. As he came to a halt in front of the Emergency Room doors, he threw open his door and ran to Serena's before heaving her up and racing inside.

He didn't care that he left the keys in the ignition, or that he'd left the car running in front of a well-known hospital where anyone could steal it. He didn't even care that he had left both his and Serena's doors open in his rush, practically inviting anyone inside. The only thing he cared about was getting Serena checked into the hospital before Endymion made his untimely welcome. Then, once she was in the hands of a nurse or doctor, he would race back outside and take care of everything. And that included waiting for Endymion's appearance. Or Darien, if it was still completely him. Motoki wasn't really sure anymore.

Motoki gave a humorless smile as a nurse rushed over with a gurney_. 'Whoever he is now, I only hope I'm conscious by the time visiting hours start tomorrow. If not, hoping he's done kicking my ass by then.'_

* * *

Done: August 22nd. 9:45-ish

Posted: August 22. 10:15-ish

Well, I certainly hoped that answered as many questions as it brought up. But now you know that Neil is in fact Nephrite. Honestly I was kind of surprised when a few reviewers asked who he was. I had thought it was obvious, but I should have realized that being he had a toddler it wasn't.

And before any of you ask, _YES_. Makoto is in fact Rose's twenty-one year old _biological _mother from the present day.

Now did anyone see all that coming? --insert slight maniacal laughter--. Sorry, I get these weird thoughts and run with them. I think it turned out well though, you're seeing that the Senshi and everyone else is fighting an enemy that they didn't know has so much control over their lives.

Now next chapter a few of you will probably hate me, or maybe love me. I just don't know what to expect anymore. As a hint though, it has to do with Venus.

Tiger Celeste


	20. Chapter 20

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

Yet another chapter done for all you wonderful readers! And this thing was such a pain in the butt too. I swear I re-wrote things like five times, different scenes in every version. But I am content with how it ended up.

All right I know a few of you had concerns about how Makoto could believe she was sixteen. Well, to put it simply: the mind is a very unusual thing. I will say that when Artemis said that someone got to Makoto's parents, they also got to Makoto. That/Those person(s) is/are the reason she didn't know she had a husband, a child, and didn't know she was really 21.

**Side note: **There should be an _almost_ in front of 21. Makoto's b-day is December 5th and that is when she's turning 21. I forgot to edit that before I posted. Sorry!

**Butterfle: **LOL, Makoto's "endowed" assets are actually what inspired and gave me the idea for her age to be higher. I mean, she does _not _look like a junior high student, right? Add a few years and a child and suddenly it fits (in my twisted opinion). Oh! And Motoki/Caderyn isn't really stupid. Just… concerned and not clearly thinking out how an enraged husband and king would react. Okay, okay. So that was kind of stupid on his part.

**Note:** The reason Serena's health took such a sudden and dangerous turn is related to how Luna was when she transformed into a human. I'm not going to say for sure what happened to them but they are connected. Kinda.

And Rei's powers are coming from where everyone else's are: her transformation pen.

All right, those were all the questions I deemed A-OK to respond to without revealing anything you wonderful people shouldn't know.

**Oh! Another thing. I have edited chapter two (and one again)** and for the sake of the story, please take the time to re-read chapter two. I added another scene that I felt helped you, the readers, see how civilians look at Serena.

Okay, please read and review! And don't hate Minako when this chapter is over! Thank you.

* * *

Ikuko Tsukino paced nervously in front of Room 512. She was in the Intensive Care Unit wing of Azabu General Hospital. Her baby, her _poor _baby was in that room and in _critical _care because no one knew what was wrong with her. She stopped, looking at the door as she tried to fight back the tears that had been in her eyes for what seemed like hours. _'What am I going to do?'_

She edged closer and pressed her ear against the door, stilling her breathing so she could hear the faint but steady beeping in the room. Unconsciously she began drawing her strength from the sound. It meant her daughter _was _okay and would _continue _to be okay. "That's it. Come on Ikuko." she whispered, her voice echoing around in the quiet hallway. "Serena's a strong girl. She will be okay."

After a few minutes she stepped away and took a deep breath. She _could _do this and more importantly Serena would need her to be strong. She would need her mother to be a shoulder to lean on when she was scared. At the thought of her daughter alone and scared in that room, Ikuko steeled her nerves and gently pushed open the door.

Unconsciously the housewife held her breath as she walked into the dark room, easing the door closed so the audible snap wouldn't be too loud. As she leaned her head against the door, Ikuko debated for a second before deciding to leave the lights off. She didn't dare disturb the quiet of the room right now; at least that's what she told herself. She released her shaky breath to collect herself before spinning around.

She tasted blood as she bit down on her lip to keep from crying out. Silently she chastened herself for not preparing better for what she would see. Of course she knew that Serena would look vulnerable and sickly, even the doctor had told her as much when she'd finally pleaded enough to be allowed to stay for the night. But her brave, strong daughter had never seemed so small and helpless as she did in that moment. _'Oh, Serena.'_

The moonlight streaming in from the open window made Serena look paler than ever, almost glowing in the darkness of the room. Ikuko slowly walked closer, eyeing the machines and equipment she would never understand. They were overpowering Serena's presence, much like the enormous bed she was laid out on. All of it -the whole room- made Serena seem like a small child, not the young adult she was steadily becoming.

The purple-haired woman came to stand beside Serena's bed nervously. It felt too surreal to be true. The phone call, the urgent words to Kenji, the long drive here by herself, the terror and panic that was gripping her. None of this felt real but she knew it was, despite her hope that they'd had the wrong girl. That this wasn't _her _Serena Tsukino. She chided herself for her wishful thinking. _'Serena isn't sleeping in her room safe and sound, Ikuko.' _

Ikuko reached out and smoothed Serena's bangs away from her forehead, almost as if proving to herself that what she was seeing was real. As the hair was brushed away, she frowned as the moonlight seemed to gleam on the pale skin revealed momentarily. But, before she could look closer at the odd sight, she was distracted as her absently trailing finger brushed against the medical tape that kept an oxygen tube in place. She sighed sadly. _'Why did this have to happen to you Serena? _How _did I not notice something was wrong with you?'_

"You are her mother now."

The sudden and unexpected comment caused Ikuko to release a startled scream, spinning around so fast she lost her footing. She flinched as she fell to the ground in an ungraceful heap, her hair falling out of its sloppy bun and loosing one of her slippers in the process. She didn't let her surprise stop her though as she clutched her chest and looked around the room quickly. "H-hello? Is anyone there. Nurse? _Doctor_?"

The voice simply repeated its earlier statement, not giving any hint to who it was. Ikuko drew her own conclusions though. It couldn't be a doctor, it was past midnight and she had already been told he would speak with her tomorrow about Serena. Then it couldn't be either a nurse or guard because they would have gladly announced their presence and what they were doing. So this was a stranger; one that could harm Serena. Ikuko surged to her feet, fierce protectiveness growing for her vulnerable child. "Who are you? You have no right to be in here."

The voice didn't say anything else as Ikuko looked around the room, her hands clinched together nervously. She sucked in a sharp breath when the curtain by the window fluttered ominously. She walked closer to Serena, drawing strength for the girl. "I am warning you." she declared, watching as the curtain continued to flutter. "I will gladly call security. This is a private room."

Ikuko's heart dropped as she watched a silhouette appeared from behind the curtain. To her alarm it was a large masculine-shape that moved silently in the moonlight. She quickly began stepping backwards before she finally stopped, hitting a nightstand next to the bed rather harshly. She blinked away the tears that the painful movement caused but her eyes lit in relief as she spotted a hospital phone resting on the small, offending table.

She took a deep breath and cast a fearful glance at her daughter before addressing the figure again. "This is your last warning." she insisted with firmness she didn't feel. Her shaky hand hovered over a red button on the phone. "One push of this button and security will be here within minutes. I won't allow you to harm my child."

As the figure moved closer to the hospital bed, Ikuko panicked and slammed her finger onto the button. The flashing red light blinked impatiently in the dark room and she felt relief course through her veins. Help would come soon and Serena would be safe. "I suggest you leave unless you would like to be escorted out by security. They will not be as courteous as I have. They won't give you the chance to run."

Thankfully the silhouette had stopped moving closer once Ikuko hit the button but as he continued to stand there silent, Ikuko grew uneasy. She peered closer, trying to see the man in the glow of the moonlight at his back at the machinery in the room, before she caught a flash of white. She scowled. _'He's smirking! How dare he! This isn't funny!'_

"Listen you--!" She didn't get to say anymore before the distant sound of boots pounding in the halls echoed into the room. She threw a victorious smirk at the silhouette as she crossed her arms over her chest. She whole form practically screamed _'I told you so!' _and that was exactly how she felt. "I told you I would protect my daughter. Never doubt that."

She was surprised as the man suddenly bowed down at the waist, a hand crossed against his stomach. She opened her mouth to question his strange actions when he began to walk backwards, efficiently distracting her. He stopped at the edge of the windowsill and he looked back at Serena for a long minute. When he didn't remove his gaze, Ikuko moved in front of his line of sight and stared at him pointedly.

He smirked again. Ikuko caught sight of him for the briefest of moments as a cloud overhead let more light into the room. Her breath involuntarily caught in her throat. He was a young man, not much older than her own daughter, but _something _about the gaze that settled on her was too old, too wise for such a young man to have. His eyes were blue, she noted absently, as he ducked his head and bowed again.

"I approve."

Ikuko frowned in confusion, her arms falling to her side. _'Approve? Of what, me?'_ She didn't get a chance to question him before the door opened and a burly man with a baton appeared. When Ikuko looked back at the window, the young man was still smirking. What happened was so fast that she almost couldn't comprehend it. One second the man was gazing at Serena with unmistakable love, the next he nodded at Ikuko with a soft smile --a genuine _smile_, not a smirk-- the next moment he was gone.

Ikuko had to slap a hand over her mouth to stifle her scream. Not even a split second later she was racing toward the window and desperately looking down to the ground. When she didn't see anything, she shared a wide-eyed glance with the bewildered security guard that still stood beside the door.

The man had jumped out of the window and it was a five-floor drop onto a cement sidewalk.

* * *

"Now you wait here, okay?" A rough voice said as gently as hands eased a black-haired little girl into a laying position. "I'm going to get another doctor to look at you again."

The girl said nothing, just stared listlessly as the man in the black clothing walk away and out of sight. Less than a minute later she was scrambling off the high bed and racing out of the room once her footing was stabilized.

"Hey! Wait!"

The child flinched as the man that had just left suddenly appeared in front of her. Thinking quickly, she turned down an approaching hallway and ran as fast as her little legs could carry her. Behind her she could still easily hear the man become angrier so she took another turn into a pure white hallway and easily dodged a few "nurses" with their funny clothing with dogs.

She couldn't hear the angry man anymore so she stopped to catch her breath once she turned another corner. She leaned against a wall and peered from the way she came, watching as people shook their heads and continue on their way. Thankfully none had tried to follow her so she took the time to close her eyes and concentrate. _'Puu… Where are you?'_

Her eyes shot open in panic as a hand roughly grabbed her arm. She opened her mouth in a soundless cry as the mean woman from when she was first brought to this place loomed down on her with glaring brown eyes. "You can't disappear like that again, young lady. It's not safe."

The girl's mind went into overdrive as the woman practically began dragging her away, her long pink fingernails digging into her upper arm and the funny dress the "doctor" put her in. Not really thinking and driven by fear, she quickly dug her teeth into the woman's hand to let her go.

"Ow! Damn it!" The woman swore as she instinctively let go to look at the damage done to her hand. It wasn't anything major and didn't break the skin, she determined seconds later, but it would have to be bandaged. She looked up from the hand, not at all surprised to see the little girl making a break for it. "Hotaru! Get back here!" The little girl ignored her, something she wasn't surprised about either, so the woman quickly spun in her spot to find a security guard who could find the errant child.

The girl breathed heavily, her heart pounding as she arrived at a door not even five minutes later. She closed her eyes, making sure she was right, before pushing it open. _'Puu is in here. I know it!'_ Her eyes widened in horror as she saw all the boxes and cords her guardian was attached to. She had heard the "doctor" say something about Puu being in a-- a "coma" but didn't understand_. 'What's a coma? Is that why Puu isn't awake?'_

She hesitantly walked closer, eyeing the strange glowing boxes. They were similar to the ones that the "doctors" had tried to stick in her before she opened her eyes again. She bit her lip as she stopped at the edge of her guardian's bed and stood on her toes to look up at her. "P-Puu?" She whispered fearfully.

The woman said nothing so the girl frowned in confusion and began to pull herself up the bed. It was hard, she learned, when the "cast"-thing the doctor put on her broken arm wasn't helping her move. After much struggling, she managed to pull herself over the metal thing and lay down beside the woman.

"Puu?" She questioned again as she lightly shook the woman's stomach. Again she didn't receive a response once more, she shook harder. "Puu! Wake up!" She began crying as the woman remained silent and deathly still. More afraid that ever, she placed a shaking hand on the woman's chest to feel her heart. It was still for a long moment before the girl felt the thumping through the thin dress and whimpered.

"A-are you mad I called you mommy?" She whispered sadly as she sat down by the woman's stomach. "I'm sorry Puu…" She crawled onto the woman's other side as she heard voice outside the door. She held her breath, clutching the older woman fearfully as she saw shadows in the little window. They disappeared seconds later but she was too scared to move away so she brought her arms over Puu's stomach into a hug instead. "Puu…"

'_You broke your key, Puu. Why?'_ She thought to herself as the tears leaked down her cheeks. She knew the woman wasn't answering so she didn't even bother speaking out loud. It would only tell the scary people she was in here. _'I--I'm all alone. A-and scared and there are so many people… They wanted to poke me with all these sharp metal things and they _hurt_. Then this man they kept calling doc-doctor put a hard, purple thing on my broken arm. I--I didn't heal it like you said, see Puu?'_

The black haired girl opened her eyes to look at the "cast" thing the man had put on her arm. It was really hard and went from her elbow to wrap around her thumb. The doctor said it was to help heal her broken arm but she wanted to heal it _herself_, like she always did when she got hurt. The girl suddenly bit her lip again and glanced at her guardian before looking back down. With a slight pause she pulled up the sleeve of the dress where the mean lady had grabbed her. It was red there now and she could see that a few pieces of her skin had been pulled off.

Darting her eyes at Puu, afraid the woman was going to wake up now, she placed her right hand over the wound. A bright white light erupted from her hands and when she took it away a moment later, perfect skin was in the place the wound was. She dropped the arm and went back to hugging Pluto's side. "I--I sorry, Puu. But it _hurt_." She whispered sadly.

"I wish Puu come back…" She said sadly, sniffling a few times. "I'm scared. People keep asking me questions and poking me a lot. Th-then when they told me to be quiet, they got mad when I won't talk." She sighed, lying her head down and attempting to draw comfort from the unconscious woman. She was almost asleep, listening to the even breaths the woman took, before her amethyst eyes opened in alarm.

She took a shaky breath and looked at the woman. "N-no…" She crawled up closer to Pluto's head and lifted a hand up. She ended up darting it back and forth a few times until she finally gathered enough courage to press it to the woman's forehead. She closed her eyes for the briefest of seconds before they snapped open again.

She crawled away backwards, disbelief crawling inside her mind. "No… NO! Don't leave me alone, Puu!" She sobbed, breaking down to bury her face in her knees. "No… Please, Puu. I'm so scared Mommy…"

The woman never answered but she never expected her to now. The girl knew the truth; she only had to remember. A long time ago Pluto told her that if she ever broke her key, she would get sent back to the Gates of Time. It hadn't meant much to her at the time but now it did. This body may be warm, its heart beating like it should, and breathing right but it _wasn't _Puu. Not anymore; her soul was trapped in the Gates of Time from now on.

The girl sobbed as the truth hit her in the face. She was all alone now in the place where people yelled and hurt her. Those mean people were going to come back and keep asking her questions she didn't understand or want to answer. Puu wouldn't be able to save her and she herself couldn't even try to open the Gates now that the key was broken.

Exhausted, both mentally and physically, the child fell asleep and dreamed of faceless phantoms that kept touching her everywhere and shiny lights in her eyes. She tried to tell them that Puu was hurt but all she could do was cry as the people said words she didn't understand. Trauma. Acute stress reaction. Prognosis. Fracture. Ulna.

Then, gasping for air and terrified beyond belief, she grabbed onto Puu saying "Mommy come back! Mommy come back!" until one of the dark phantoms pulled her away. She was helpless as Puu was lifted away to a big white box that flashed red lights and screeched so loudly it made her cover her ears and scream.

Then there was yet another faceless phantom grabbing her shoulders and suddenly she was trying to run after Puu as the box went away. She fell, watching the box go farther and farther away and she was scared she was never going to see Puu again. A phantom with shiny black eyes picked her up, saying something she couldn't hear. Distantly she realized she was screaming every thought that crossed her mind. Mommy, I'm sorry. I'll be a good firefly. Don't leave me. Take me with you, please.

Then the faceless phantoms started yelling "Hotaru! Hotaru!" urgently but she couldn't answer because she was falling into blackness. Even with her eyes closed, she could see Puu being taken away from her over and over again and couldn't say anything to make her come back. Puu was gone and she was all alone in a world she didn't understand and people that didn't understand her.

* * *

"For some reason, I don't think you're supposed to be in here."

Darien winced as he leaned against the door he had just shut, fully expecting a reprimanding nurse to be behind him. Suddenly he felt like that little boy again; the one the nurses had to chase down the halls when he was tired of staying in his room. With his head ducked down, he turned around uncharacteristically ashamed. "Look, I'm sorry. I know visiting hours don't start for another hour but I just needed to see my friend."

He looked up in confusion when he heard soft laughing. This wasn't the nurse he expected. Instead it was a middle-aged woman clad in a pair of purple checkered pajamas and black house slippers. Looking around quickly, Darien saw he was in a plain hospital room with cream colored walls and two bland pictures of landscapes. A single window was on the far side of the wall across from him and a curtain not far from it, blocking one of the beds. The other bed was just to his right, empty and waiting for its patient. A few nightstands and small tables were here and there and a television mounted on the wall across and in between both beds. He quickly stifled a groan as he realized there were no personal touches anywhere. It could be any patients' room.

'_Don't tell me I got the wrong room number. It was hard enough to get one out of Nurse June in the first place. Let alone getting back here without her noticing.' _He looked at the woman to see she was watching him curiously now, an eyebrow raised. She wasn't a nurse but she also didn't look like a patient, so he threw caution to the wind and took a chance. "Excuse me, ma'am, is this Serena Tsukino's room?"

The woman continued to eye him curiously for a moment before nodding. Before Darien had a chance to thank her, she was walking toward the second bed. He sucked in a breath as she moved the curtain out of the way and placed it on the other side, giving him a full, unhindered view of a sleeping Serena. Unconsciously he began to walk closer as he took in his friend's condition.

She was almost to the point of being unnaturally pale, the dark circles under her eyes making her look like death. She looked far more exhausted and ailed than he ever remembering seeing her, including that horrible morning she'd fallen off the fire escape. Her hands rested on top of a crocheted blank spread across her but one had been graced with the presence of an IV. Monitors whiled and beeped around them as he quietly moved an armchair and placed it on her left side, opposite the curtain and window. "Serena…"

For her part, Ikuko didn't say anything as she moved out of the way to stand beside the vacant bed. As the strange man gently took Serena's non-IV-ed hand in his own, her eyes widened in realization. She sat down on the empty bed hard. _'T-the man from last night. It's him! I know it is!'_

She watched him nervously as she remembered the panic that had engulfed her after he jumped out of the window. The security guard hadn't been able to give her any comfort, he had been just as bewildered and scared as she was. After only a few minutes, the man had dismissed it as nothing; claiming that the stress of her daughter being in a hospital and his lack of coffee had forced the night to play tricks on them. Nothing more, nothing less. Both knew, however, that it was a far fetched story so she had begged and pleaded the guard to look outside.

She'd practically worried her lip raw by the time he'd returned with the simple statement: "No body or suspicious people. Just some wet footprints on the sidewalk that were probably caused by a gardener earlier in the night." Suffice to say, Ikuko had not been happy and kept her mouth firmly shut when he asked if she wanted the incident reported.

'_Night playing tricks on me, my foot!' _She thought to herself irritably. _'I'd love to see that guard see him now!' _Ikuko frowned before deciding to use the man's distraction of Serena to study him. He was young, perhaps younger than she had originally thought. Now that she could see him in full light, she'd estimate him to be about eighteen. He had sharp angles on his face and a pair of deep blue eyes that offset his dark hair. He was handsome and, judging by his leather jacket and the fact he had placed a full bouquet of roses on Serena's bed when he said her name, he was probably relatively wealthy.

He knew Serena, obviously, but Ikuko wondered just how they could have met. _'I don't think he goes to her school and he doesn't seem like the type to go to an arcade.' _ Her heart lodged in her thought as it occurred to her that _he _may know Serena but she might _not _know him. _'Oh. What should I do?'_ She thought worriedly as she began chewing her bottom lip between her teeth.

Rationally speaking, the man could very well know Serena. She was, after all, a very friendly girl and knew many people. The young man could know her from anywhere and learned of Serena's accident from anyone. Irrationally speaking, he had been in Serena's I.C.U. room last night without permission and said very odd and cryptic things. Not to mention he bowed to her before jumping out of a window where he should have landed five floors onto cement.

But here he was only ten hours later, impeccably dressed in jeans, a plain green shirt, and a black leather jacket. With roses and no wounds. Ikuko blinked at her last thought and looked closer. The man, whoever he was, didn't seem harmed in the slightest. He had came in in a rush, easing the door behind him and breathing fast before she'd spoke to him. He had been embarrassed and nervous, anticipating being caught at any minute. But he wasn't wincing or limping as he walked; he was in perfect health, if she said so herself.

The purple-haired woman frowned in bafflement. _'I'm beginning to wonder if they are even the same people anymore. I mean… this man seems harmless enough. He's just holding Serena's hand for goodness sakes but last night there was something _off _about the other man. His gaze was too old and wise. Maybe this __**isn't **__the same smirking silhouette.'_

Suddenly Ikuko was aware of a strange quiet settling over the room and she realized with a start that the man had been whispering something to her sleeping daughter. She attempted a small smile as she noticed he was looking at her sharply but couldn't stop her eyes from looking at his hands. They were still covering Serena's un-IV-ed hand and by the looks of it his muscles were getting tight. _'Hmm. Or is this the same man? They are both obviously concerned about Serena's welfare.'_

"Are you a friend of Serena's?" she asked, surprising herself. She had honestly been hoping he would be the first one to strike up a conversation. _'Oh well. No harm done I suppose. Being friendly might help me learn more about him.'_

The young man was silent for a few moments before finally nodding slowly. Ikuko could see the silent battle in his eyes before he completely released Serena's hand from his own. "Yes. I was with her last night when she fainted."

Almost against her will, Ikuko leaned forward intently. Common sense told her that if he had been with her baby when she fell ill, he might know what caused it. "Do you know _why _she fainted? I was going to ask the man who brought her in --Motoki I believe is his name-- but a nurse rushed him away before I got a chance this morning. He looked…" she faltered, her hands wringing together in her lap. "bad, to say the least."

She looked back up to see the young man smirk. She knew without a doubt he was the smirking silhouette now; there was too much of a resemblance and evidence for him to be anything else. She opened her mouth again, knowing she was going to say something but unsure of what, when he spoke. "Yes, his name is Motoki. He is a mutual friend of Serena's and mine. He works at the arcade where Serena fainted. And," his smirk widened and an unseen flash of gold lit his eyes for a brief second, "I assure you he got off with much less than he could have."

The panic was beginning to set in again, Ikuko could feel it. Unconsciously she stood up from the empty bed and took a few steps toward Serena and the man. "Y-you're the one who did that to him?"

Darien frowned, sensing the woman's unease. Something dashed through his mind but it was gone long before he could process what it was. "Yes. I had some… _reservations _with bringing Serena to the hospital last night. When I left to take care of something, he had rushed her here before I could stop him."

"Y-you…" The purple-haired woman choked on her words. The man was right across from her and he was too close now; he was too dangerous. "You didn't _want _my baby to be saved?"

Darien lurched to his feet and took a few steps away from the woman. He glanced at Serena through the corner of his eye before meeting Ikuko's form in a quick survey. "You are her mother."

Ikuko's right hand gripped the railing of Serena's bed as she stared at the man in front of her. Déjà vu creeping into her bones and she didn't like it in the least. It was just like last night; he was a dangerous stranger in her daughter's room all over again. Protectiveness swelled up as she gave the strange man an even stare. "Serena was in the _I.C.U. _last night! No one knew what was wrong with her! She could have _died _and you didn't want to save my daughter!?"

Darien blanched and involuntarily took a step back, his thoughts running a mile a minute. _'I.C.U.? D-__**died**__? Why hadn't Motoki said anything? No …He doesn't know either. He was waiting for me and kept demanding why Serena fainted, blocking me from entering the hospital. So I told him she did because Jupiter died and not her injuries, he freaked out and kept asking questions. Then we got into that fight and neither of us made it inside the hospital.' _He sent a quick glimpse toward Serena, watching her still- sleeping face. Suddenly he knew what was wrong with the picture. She should have woken up by now; not even she could have been able to sleep through her mother's shouting.

He looked up at the woman. She was breathing heavily from her outburst and was gripping the railing so hard her knuckles were white. But what made him wince was the teary glare she was giving him; she looked ready to burst down in tears any moment. "Of course I wanted to save Serena. But I knew this wasn't-- never mind." he sighed, not willing to go into detail. "If I had known Serena was in need of such urgent medical attention, Mrs. Tsukino, I would have driven her here myself. Trust me."

A few tense minutes later Ikuko was still breathing heavier than normal but she released the railing with a sigh of her own. "I will take your word for it. God knows why I am though. First you appear out of nowhere in her room last night and now this. I just don't know what to think of you."

Darien's brow furrowed. Something nagged at the back of his mind at Mrs. Tsukino's words. _'A dark room. A statement. A flashing red light…' _he groaned internally. _'What is going on? I know I was a little out of it last night but I think I'd remember going to Serena's room.' _

Darien was distracted out of his thoughts as the door crept open and a familiar face appeared. Motoki surveyed the room in an absent manner before grinning as he spotted Ikuko standing next to Serena's bed. "Mrs. Tsukino!" He walked into the room, pushing the door open wider to reveal a middle-aged man and a doctor standing behind him. "Look who I found wandering in the halls! The doc' here was just giving your husband an update."

Motoki's smile quickly slid off his face as the door swung all the way open to reveal Darien. He gulped before laughing nervously, drawing everyone's attention to where he was staring. "H--hey there, Darien! Still mad at me?"

Darien paused in trek toward the window, glaring at the arcade worker darkly while also trying to avoid the discomfort of all the eyes watching him. "Darien Shields? Is that _you?_" Darien pried his glare away from Motoki to see the doctor eyeing him, his hazel eyes bright with realization. "It _is _you! My little miracle boy all grown up!"

Darien barely managed to stop his involuntary grimace in time. Doctor Vigil. If there was one man he did _not _want to see in this place it was him. The man was absentminded and had an awful habit of believing he could perform miracles on all his patients. He still believed that the sole reason Darien was alive today was because of him. _'Which has absolutely no merit. I was barely injured in that accident. I doubt bandaging a few bleeding wounds, putting a cast on, and making the oh-so-clever diagnosis I couldn't remember anything makes him the reason I'm alive.' _Darien didn't say any of this thoughts and opinions though. Instead he forced them back, took a deep breath, and pasted a smile on his face. "Doctor Vigil. How good to see you again."

The man nodded sagely, a smile on his face. "I'm sure it is. Now, Darien my boy, what brings you here?" He gestured widely, encompassing the whole room. "Don't tell me all that miracle work is going to pieces."

Darien had never been happier to hear Motoki's voice. The man had skittered up beside him as soon as the doctor spoke and now came to Darien's rescue. "Actually Doctor Vigil, Darien and I were both there last night when our friend," he gestured patiently toward the head of the bed where the Tsukino's were hovering. "passed out. We are all very worried about her."

The doctor frowned. "Right, right." he walked the few feet to the end of Serena's bed and picked up the chart that he had sat down there. "Tsukino…Tsukino… Now I remember!" He straightened up and addressed the couple who were watching him hesitantly. "As you know, Mr. And Mrs. Tsukino, your daughter was brought in late last night after a reported fainting spell. At first she was unresponsive to our attempts to awaken her from her unconscious state. She--"

"She is okay _now_, right doctor?" Ikuko interrupted pleadingly, her fingers wringing together again. "You said she was out of danger when she was moved from I.C.U. this morning but you didn't say anymore to me when she was moved to this room."

"Well," the doctor began slowly, "We honestly don't know if she is _completely _in the clear, Mrs. Tsukino. We had originally admitted her into the I.C.U. as a precaution. Eventually however, we determined she was in no immediate danger and moved her in here."

"Why was she brought into the I.C.U. in the first place?" Darien questioned quietly. He crossed his arms across his chest absently, trying to avoid looking at the girl but unable to. _'Please be okay, Serena.'_ He pleaded silently to her pale, unconscious form. _'You're beginning to really worry me here.'_

Dr. Vigil was frowning. "Miss Tsukino had been showing signs of having difficulty breathing and was unresponsive to any of our attempts to awaken her. And the person who had admitted her had disappeared after stating her name and that she had fainted a few hours ago." Here Darien and Motoki shared a guilty wince as the man frowned sternly at Motoki. "We did not know the extent of the emergency, or why she had fainted, so we did what we thought best."

He took a second to clear his throat before continuing on. "Now this brings me to what I was going to say. Another reason she was brought into the I.C.U. was because when I examined Serena I discovered multiple injuries on her person. We were worried she had been in an accident. Later we gathered they were deliberately placed."

"What kinds of injuries?" Mr. Tsukino demanded. He glanced down at the girl, looking for the injuries in question. He frowned back at the doctor in concern when he didn't see any. "How serious are they?"

The doctor gave the man an even stare. "The most serious one is a laceration on her back that someone had stitched. It extends from her lower right shoulder blade to her lower left back but, fortunately, skims her spine and ribs." Ikuko gasped loudly but kept her mouth firmly shut, so the doctor continued on. "When Miss Tsukino was brought it, the wound had been bleeding moderately. We assume it had been pulled open do to too much exertion on the body, more than likely during her fainting spell. After I examined it, I determined that it had early stages of infection."

Darien barely managed to hide his wince as the doctor stopped to look down at Serena's chart. _'So it was beginning to get infected like I had thought. At least it is healed better, even if no one else knows that. The doctor might have said that it extended from her lower right shoulder but it healed a few inches there and at her lower back too. I'm glad Doctor Vigil didn't see them when Serena fell off the fire escape. If he thinks the wounds look bad now…' _

"Because of the infection," The doctor continued on, "we were forced to reopen the wound. We cleaned it and re-sewed it, allowing the injury to begin healing once more. Hmm… besides that, there are two smaller wounds on Miss Tsukino's stomach that had been previously sewn as well. Those were almost completely healed so we took the liberty of pulling the stitches out and bandaging them. _Oh! _That reminds me. As a precaution, we have completely bandaged and bound your daughter's abdomen to avoid further injury and infection. When she wakes up she will have difficulty sitting up and moving about, just to warn you. Other than that, there is evidence of numerous, but faint and healing, bruising and small cuts covering most of her body. Nothing as severe as the wounds I just named. Fortunately."

The doctor stopped momentarily, eyeing the couple in front of him. They seemed like good people but something was still wrong with this picture. "Her injuries, Mr. and Mrs. Tsukino, are the most peculiar. Especially when neither us nor your family doctor have any record of caring for them. Do either of you have any idea how your daughter got in such a condition?"

Ikuko felt her tears slip down her checks as she gazed at her daughter sorrowfully. She snapped her head up to the doctor's tense tone and shook her head with wide eyes. "I-I don't know. I never noticed anything out of the ordinary. And --and she never told me she was injured…" _'My baby… how did I not see any of that? I'm so sorry, Serena.'_

Dr. Vigil stared at her intently before moving on towards Kenji. "And you Mr. Tsukino? Did you how your daughter was in such a condition? …Are there problems at home perhaps?"

Like Ikuko, Kenji had been looking down sorrowfully at his Serena. He shook his head slowly, giving the man a quick offended look as he placed a comforting arm around his wife. "No, of course not. I never noticed anything out of the ordinary either. Maybe if we had…" he sighed, feeling his wife's shoulders beginning to shake. "We're so sorry Serena."

Darien listened with rapt attention and a frown. He knew, like everyone else in the room, what the doctor was insinuating of the couple and it made him uneasy. Just by spending the few private minutes with Mrs. Tsukino, he knew that she would never do anything to harm her daughter and he could safely assume that her husband would never as well. Both were too worried, too protective, too _caring _of Serena to be blamed for Rei's mistakes. And he knew that was what prompted the words out of his mouth before he managed to think them over. "Serena was caught in a youma attack. That's how she got her injuries."

Immediately all attention turned to Darien and he internally winced. _'I won't back out now. Serena needs an alibi and I'll say anything I can do give her one.' _He met Dr. Vigil's gaze steadily, trying not to give a hint that he was making up the story on the spot."I don't know how or where but Serena was caught in an attack. She came to me after it happened, knowing I was pre-Med and could help her. She insisted that she didn't want to worry her family and going to the hospital would do just that. No matter what I said she refused to get proper medical attention or tell her parents what happened. I eventually agreed to help when she promised she would take care of herself and would come back if she needed more assistance. It was the only way I could make sure she would be looked after by someone."

He stopped, feeling everyone's gaze boring into him. He glanced over at Mr. Tsukino to see the man was looking at him curiously but something about his gaze made Darien realize that he completely believed what he'd just fabricated. _'Even if it's not true, I know it could happen.'_ Darien thought as he looked toward Serena's mother. _'Serena never likes anyone to worry about her. I've seen her tell the Senshi she wasn't injured when she was… It would make sense she'd do something similar to her family.'_

Mrs. Tsukino, on the other hand, looked more than a little suspicious. Darien grimaced, seeing the teary narrowed gaze settled into his own eyes. _'I think she has it out to get me.' _he thought dryly, _'She was already looking at me like that before everyone else came in.'_ He gave himself a mental shake, looking at Motoki as he stood beside him. The man had a suspicious look, not unlike Mrs. Tsukino's. _'Figures he wouldn't believe me. Not after that display between the two of us last night. But, I don't know. A youma attack _might _have provoked such a defensive reaction out of me. It's very possible. '_ Darien sighed, looking back at Dr. Vigil.

The doctor was stroking his chin thoughtfully, eyeing his "_miracle boy"_. He had never had a reason to believe Darien would lie about something about this and he _did _seem honest enough. He nodded slowly. "That would seem the most logical, my boy." His brow furrowed, looking at the girl on the bed. "It would also explain the hysteria."

"_Hysteria?"_ Motoki sputtered in amazement, effectively steering everyone away from Darien's story. He gulped as his head swung between the doctor and Serena incredulously. "What hysteria?"

"Yes, what hysteria?" Ikuko looked up at the doctor as well, wiping the last traces of her tears. She glanced at the doctor sternly, placing her hands on her hips. "Wait. That's why she hasn't woken up yet isn't it?"

Doctor Vigil wrinkled his nose at the reminder. "That is correct Mrs. Tsukino. Shortly before you arrived last night, we had to sedate her. The effects are still rendering her unconscious right now." his eyes flickered toward Motoki and Darien. "It will probably be best if you two wait outside while I discuss this. This should be for family only."

Darien's face darkened and Motoki's eyes widened as he spotted a brief golden flicker. _'Ah, not again! I knew it was too much to hope that he was completely back to normal. It was bad enough that he kept flickering between Endymion and Darien last night.'_ He fought hard to suppress his grin. _'Talk about split personalities, huh? But… there's still something wrong. He kept asking me what happened to him and Serenity's connection. Then he left toward the hospital, saying something about re-establishing the link with energy. I don't know how he even went back to being Darien but now that I saw that flash… I think Endymion could come out at any minute.'_

He shook his head, eyeing the man out of the corner of his eyes before he looked toward Serena's parents. _'You better appreciate this, Dare.' _"If you don't mind, Mr. and Mrs. Tsukino, we would really like to stay." He pleaded. "We promise we won't tell anyone what we've heard. We just want to know what's wrong with Serena and if she will be all right. Right, Darien?"

Darien shifted his glare toward Motoki when the man elbowed him sharply in the ribs. He resisted the urge to rub the offended area as he nodded at the couple. "We promise. We are just very concerned about Serena."

Ikuko stared at the young men on the other side of the doctor. She could tell they _were _truly worried but there wasn't a need for them to stay, not really. She glanced at her husband and her jaw dropped open a little as she saw he was nodding at their terms. "You may stay." he replied before addressing the doctor. "They've already heard everything else so I really don't see the need for them to leave. I don't fault them for caring about their friend and wondering what is wrong with her."

Darien rose an eyebrow. _'This was crazy, protective Kenji Tsukino that threatens all males in a two mile radius just to make sure they don't ask about his daughter?'_ Motoki was sighing in relief at his side though, so he didn't argue; he wanted to know what was wrong with Serena. "Thank you. This means a lot to us, Mr. and Mrs. Tsukino."

Understanding dawned on Darien as he saw the triumphant that flashed through Mr. Tsukino's eyes as the doctor frowned. _'Ah. He's doing this because of what Doctor Vigil all but asked he did. He's not willing to be accommodating and is using the passive aggressive approach. Defending himself and offending the doctor without making it overly obvious.'_ He snorted in amusement, not seeing how Mr. Tsukino looked over at him curiously.

"_As _I was saying," Dr. Vigil declared, startling everyone out of their respective thoughts, "Miss Tsukino was in hysteria last night when we finally managed to awaken her from her unconscious state. We could not get her to calm down in the slightest so we were forced to sedate her so she would not injure herself anymore."

"What was she doing Doctor, that would cause you to sedate her?" Motoki questioned, leaning against the window he was standing in front of. Besides him he felt Darien do the same after a few seconds of hesitation.

"It wasn't what she was doing but more the danger she was putting herself in. But, if you must know, she had been trashing about and screaming, saying a handful of things. Some were names, others were common sayings we come across in such situations. You know, things like _'get away from me'_ or _'please don't hurt me'_. Normal reactions I assure you."

"What names was she screaming?" Ikuko asked curiously as she brushed Serena's bangs out of her eyes.

"The usual. Mother, Father." The doctor suddenly shook his head in what looked like amusement. "The rest make much more sense now that I know she had been a victim in a youma attack. She kept calling for the Senshi. You know, Mercury, Venus, and Jupiter. Especially Jupiter, now that I think about it." his brow furrowed again. "And she never asked for Sailor Moon or Mars either. I thought it was odd but now I guess those three had been closest to her in the battle and she looked to them to save her. Then there was something like… Edward? No, no. That isn't right."

"Endymion_._" Darien sucked in a shocked breath. _'How did I know that?'_ Beside him he felt Motoki stiffen in his slouched position. Looking out of the corner of his eye, he saw the blonde looking at him incredulously. _'You know who he is but how do I? And why does that name feel so familiar? Wait… not long ago some men were calling out 'Endymion'. It felt familiar then too.'_

'_What the hell?'_ Motoki thought to himself as he looked at the shell-shocked Darien. _'How does he remember his name?'_ He frowned, looking closer. _'It was instinctive.'_ He realized seconds later. _'Darien instinctively remembered that name because somewhere in there he also remembers Serenity would call for him. At least that explains why he kept flickering from one person to another. He was being called and I bet it had something to do with that connection thing he kept talking about…'_

"Hey! That's what it was." Doctor Vigil turned toward Darien with a big smile, breaking the silent conversation between the two men. "How did you know that? Not a very common name I must say. Of course he is probably a mutual friend, huh?" he frowned at the man's tense stance. "Now that I think about it Darien, I heard your name a few times as well. I had brushed it off at the time though. But I guess I should have known it was you. You miracles always seem to find a way to each other. And me. So how did you two--"

"_Doctor_." Kenji sighed in exasperation. "Could we _please _get back to Serena's condition? What is _wrong _with her?"

Dr. Vigil had the grace to look embarrassed. "We are still unsure. Tests show she is simply suffering from exhaustion and a slight case of dehydration. However there are traces of an unknown agent in her bloodstream that neither myself nor any of my colleagues have ever seen before. Nor anything remotely like it; it makes everyone very curious. We would like to keep Miss Tsukino for the next few days for observation, if you don't mind. More testing will be needed to determine if the agent is what caused her to faint as she did."

'_Unknown agent. I knew it. The Senshi magic is influencing her body now. And, damn it, they're going to be curious until she's exhausted to death. She shouldn't have to go through this too.'_ Darien stood up and walked out of the room without a word. Everyone simultaneously winced as the door slammed shut behind the young man in an agitated manner, none understanding what had exactly happened.

* * *

Minako saw her as soon as Rei had slid open the temple house's door. There, in the middle of the living room sitting on a genuine red silk seating pillow that Rei had dug up who-knows-where, was Ms. Royalty herself. It didn't even take a second for the golden-haired woman to realize who the damn woman was impersonating; even she had to admit that she was almost the spitting image of Princess Serenity.

Her silver hair was done in the Lunarian royal hairstyle, she had pale white skin with just a hint of rosy complexion on her face, there was a slightly-glowing crescent moon imprinted on her forehead and, as a finishing touch Minako was sure, a white gown laced in pearls and gold embroidery engulfed her body and portions of the large pillow she was sitting on. If she had never seen a Lunarian princess before, Minako would have thought that this woman was one without a doubt. And, judging by the slightly dazed look in Rei's eyes, she was sure that was exactly what her comrades thought when they saw her: Princess Serenity in the flesh.

Except Minako knew a few things that her comrades didn't. For starters, this woman's eyes were not Serenity's clear blue ones; instead they were silver and had a glass-like quality like a great majority of Lunarians had. Second, there was the fact that Serenity was half Solarian and neither her hair nor her complexion could be so pale with said blood flowing through her veins. They were paler than the average person, yes, but not like this woman's --whose complexion was a typical Lunarian trait as well. Lastly, and the most important fact by far, there was the fact that Serenity was _already _here in Tokyo. As one Serena Tsukino who had no glowing crescent moon stamped onto her forehead.

But Minako couldn't say any of this to the women in the room. Instead she allowed the surprisingly quiet Rei_**--**__'surprising in the fact she hasn't snapped at me to quit gawking and get inside already, of course'-- _to finally usher into the room as she shook herself out of her stupor. Of course she wished to could go back to the numbness of the stupor when she walked the rest of the way in. To her horror a _human _Luna was rushing from the kitchen, a real-China tea cup in hand, and headed straight toward the faux-Serenity.

It took everything Minako had not to scream.

Instead she slowly eased herself on the cushion next to a pale Ami, who she just spotted across the low table the woman sat in front of. She took a second to gather her thoughts and smartly schooled her expression into one of curiosity. "Well… I'm assuming we have much to discuss."

Luna started in surprise, her hand flying up to her chest. Minako was sorely disappointed to see she had already handed the tea to the woman_. 'Oh, drat. I would have loved to see Luna spill it on her. Rude to think, yes. But I believe that would be letting her get off easy right now. __**Really **__easy.'_

"Minako--!" Luna stopped herself short, casting a quick glance to the silver-haired woman. The shape-shifter straightened herself out and continued much more calmly, much to Minako's amusement and disgust. _'What a person does for their sovereign. Hopefully it will force her to be nicer though. That way I can get something out of this little development. __**Everyone **__would benefit from a nicer Luna, as a matter of what.'_

"Venus. We have some invigorating news. A parameter, or the fundamental objective if you will, of our mission is now accomplished." Luna stood, moving a few inches away and gesturing toward the woman smiling softly at her. The darker-haired woman beamed in reply before looking back at Minako expectantly. "As I'm sure you have guessed, this is Her Royal Highness Princess Serenity. She has _finally _been reunited with us."

Minako found it hard to get past the fact that Luna was actually using words like 'invigorating' and 'parameter' and _was _actually being _nice _but she somehow managed to. _'Of course now I'm reminded of how Artemis used to be. It would be just like him to pull words like that out in 'mission talk', smiling all the while. Makes me kind of miss him…' _When she sensed eyes watching her closely she glanced up and saw Rei look away quickly, finally moving away from the door as she did so. _'Shoot. I've taken too long to respond.'_

"Your Highness." She murmured demurely as she bowed her head slightly. When she looked up, she smiled nervously to hide her gag at the woman's grin. _'Oh! So you think this is funny, do you?'_ She inwardly seethed to herself. "It is an …honor to make your acquaintance." She quickly bowed her head again to hide the mischievous expression that was caused by a stray thought. Never say she couldn't get back at the woman. "I only wish that my fellow comrade, Jupiter, could have had the honor of your presence as well, my Lady."

She straightened out just in time to see the woman's face contort in unbridled shock. She bit her lip to keep a malevolent laugh inside. _'Good. I had hoped that would throw her into a loop.' _Unfortunately for Minako, the shock was masked just as quickly as it had appeared. The woman turned toward Luna with a simple, curious tilt of her head. "Lady Luna, what ever does Venus mean? Where is Sailor Jupiter? I have not seen her since I began my stay with yourself and Mars yesterday."

Minako gave a small smile as Luna fumbled for words. Obviously the guardian hadn't wanted to break the news to faux-Serenity. She had to fight to keep the smile on her face pleasant as Luna shot her a dark look. _'Oh, so sad. Little Luna is going to be in trouble. I must say I should have been doing this all along. Nice little Venus is going isn't going to be so nice and timid anymore.' _she leveled at stare at the imposter. _'I hope you expect that as well. I will not stand for this.'_

"Jupiter has died, Your Highness." The previous quiet Ami uttered softly, her head bowed in sadness more than respect Minako was sure. "In the last youma battle, she sacrificed herself to save several people."

"That is correct." Rei added as equally quiet, her tone making Minako looked over at her for an appraisal. _'There is something wrong with her. I would have thought she would be ecstatic and fawning over Ms. Royal like Luna is.' _The girl didn't look any different; she was wearing her normal priestess garb, her fierce expression was still planted on her face; so why wasn't she happy about these latest developments? Something clicked in the back of Minako's mind, forcing her to look more deeply into the violet eyes now staring at her own blue eyes.

'_S-she's upset about Makoto. Honest to goodness upset that her friend died. This isn't something I expected… At least not with the state her half of the ruby is in.' _Suddenly an enraged look come upon the girl's face, making Minako look away and roll her eyes at a wall. _'Spoke too soon.'_

"It's Sailor Moon's fault for not being there." The priestess practically growled suddenly, making Minako wince internally. _'I really want to know what she's going to do when she realizes that she's talking about her Princess there.'_ She frowned as she looked back at the silver-haired woman. _'Of course, with her around I don't see that happening anytime soon. I bet that's her plan.'_

The faux-Princess's brow creased the slightest bit, showing her confusion. "Sailor Moon? I am not familiar with such a person."

And just like that everyone in the room froze. Minako looked down at her lap, feeling tears prickling the back of her eyes. _'Oh goodness… __**That's **__her plan. I should have known. That's the only reason she would have brought herself into play like this. She told me that I would be able to handle this myself; she swore it even! And for her to come here and pretend to be Serenity… that means something is happening with the real one and she's become desperate.'_

Luna frowned as she eased herself in the cushion to the left side of where the silver-haired woman sat. For a second Rei, who was sitting on Luna's right now, scowled before her expression cleared slightly. "What do you mean you are not familiar with a Sailor Moon, Your Highness?"

'_The fraud'_, Minako thought deviously, turned toward the priestess. "I do not know of such a person, Lady Ma--" She smiled gently, "Forgive me. Lady Rei." The crease suddenly returned. "You said Lady Jupiter died? And it was this Sailor Moon's fault?"

"Sailor Moon was the first Senshi I recovered, my Lady." Luna explained gently. "I found her a little over eight months ago. She… she is one of your protectors, Your Highness."

The woman shook her head lightly. "There is not a senshi of such a station, Lady Luna. Only a Venus, a Mercury, a Jupiter, and a Mars. There is no Senshi of the Moon."

Everyone, minus Minako who was gazing down in her lap sadly, gapped at Princess Serenity's words. Ami, looking the calmest outwardly, was the one who spoke up finally. "Perhaps… Perhaps, Princess Serenity, you could please explain to us some things."

The faux-Serenity smiled at the blue-haired woman warmly. "Certainly, Lady Ami. I believe I should start with how my protectors came to be."

Minako stayed silent, not contributing any questions or comments for the next three hours. She didn't care that Ami kept shooting her curious glances every other word. _'More like every other lie.'_ she amended sadly. _'There's nothing I can do anymore. Not when my dear boss is here running the show now.'_

* * *

Darien finally returned to Serena's room hours later, intent on apologizing to someone for his stormed out exit. Unfortunately for him, when he returned to Serena's room it was empty save for a still-unconscious Serena and a new patient in the previous unoccupied bed. He walked into the room cautiously, sensing something _off _about the new patient but unsure of what. She was only a little girl with straight, short black hair and her skin was pale-looking, of which could be attributed to a number of things. He couldn't see anything about her that was suspicious…

As the door shut behind him, the girl's head snapped up from where it had been resting on her raised knees. He blinked as a pair of fearful amethyst eyes, the color only a few shades dark than Rei's eyes, looked gazes with him. Quickly enough most of the fear faded out and they filled with a look he knew all too well: mistrust.

He gave a small smile but didn't say anything as he walked a few feet closer to get a better look at the child that was now using the time to study him as well. She was relatively healthy looking; there was a cast on her arm, a bandaged cut on her cheek, and he could see dark smudges around her red-rimmed eyes, but in a general sense she didn't look sick. Her eyes were shadowed and weary though and, by the redness of the eyes, it was obvious she had been crying a lot and was thoroughly exhausted. Darien's eyes narrowed in thought. _'I would guess she was in an accident. Yet, there was something else that caused those shadows and that mistrust.'_

The girl saw the narrowing of the own man's eyes and, thinking he was going to say something mean like everyone had been lately, narrowed her own eyes into a fierce glare. She knew he wasn't a nurse or a doctor (both of which she learned were types of healers) since he wasn't wearing all the funny clothes they wore but that didn't mean he was _nice_. And then there was his eyes; they were really dark blue and she could see that he held a lot of secrets, that he was really worried about something, and that he was suspicious and curious of her. She narrowed her eyes closer together. _'Why is he still looking at me like that?'_

Neither person noticed as the door opened and Mrs. Tsukino and a red-headed nurse walked in right beside Darien. The two woman stopped, shocked at the sight of the man and the little girl staring at each other so intently. They shared a glance, each thinking the same thing. _'Do they realize how alike they look?'_

There was the identical wary expressions they wore on their faces; their eyes -one set of dark blue and the other dark amethyst- were narrowed with curiosity and uncertainty; both their postures were stiff; the raven-black hair that graced both their heads; even their clothing -Darien still in his green shirt (now sans jacket, Ikuko noted absently) and Hotaru in her light green regulation hospital gown- were similar. From where they were standing, it looked like the only thing different was the bone structure, skin tone, and eye color.

"Whoa…" Ikuko shook her head a few times. _'That is certainly unexpected. I hadn't realized how similar they were until they stood so close to one another like that. Even the look in their eyes are the same, if only his is a little softened around the edges. I wonder if he had similar experiences as a child.' _She suddenly rolled her eyes. _'Too much of a coincidence, I'm sure.'_ "Excuse me… Mr. Shields?"

Darien started at the call of his surname, blinking a few times to realize he'd been lost in his thoughts. He looked to the voice, seeing Mrs. Tsukino and an unfamiliar nurse standing just inside of the door practically gawking at him and the little girl. "Good evening, Mrs. Tsukino and Ms…?" He placed on his best polite smile as he turned toward the unnamed nurse.

"Oh, just call me Nurse Saji." the woman giggled, her curled red hair bouncing at the movement. As it moved under the artificial light, Darien could see strands of silver hair here and there. He frowned in confusion slightly, realizing she was probably a handful of years older than the woman beside her. Her kind face and sparkling green eyes made her look younger. "And good evening to you too, Mr… Shields, was it?" He nodded. "All right then. What brings you here this late Saturday, Mr. Shields?"

Ikuko snapped to attention. "Yes. Good evening to you too, Mr. Shields. Forgive me for being blunt but… what _are _you doing here? I thought you had left hours ago."

He nodded back to Serena's bed. "I came back to see if Serena was awake yet. I also wanted to apologize for my rather abrupt and rude exit earlier, Mrs. Tsukino; I should not have done such a thing. So," He unconsciously drew himself up before bowing slightly. "This is my formal apology for my rash actions. I am sorry if they disturbed you or your husband."

Ikuko's mouth twitched into a smile at his polite demeanor. "There is no need to apologize, Mr. Shields. Especially not so formally. I know myself and my husband simply thought you had concerns about Serena. I cannot blame you for that; everyone does."

He nodded. "Thank you, Mrs. Tsukino. And, please, call me Darien. You as well, Nurse Saji."

As Darien glanced back in the direction of Serena's bed, the two woman shared a look again. _'How often was a male under twenty that mature and polite?'_ Saji thought to herself, slightly amazed. _'Now if only my own son would act like that. Sure he can be polite but not _that _polite. This man acts like a King!' _She grinned as she tried to imagine her poor nineteen year old, video-gaming son in a crown and fur-lined cape. _'It doesn't work. And I know he would never remove the eyebrow ring, even at the chance of becoming royalty.'_ She sighed and as she did so caught sight of Hotaru sitting on her bed watching everyone with sharp eyes. _'Shoot!'_

"Mrs. Tsukino? Where did you put that duffel bag?" She asked as she looked over at the woman to see she was quietly talking to Darien about her daughter's current condition.

The purple-haired woman blinked and looked at Hotaru. "Oh! I guess we got a little sidetracked, huh?" she said wryly as she picked up the small blue bag from the floor. She quickly handed it to the nurse who took it and walked toward Hotaru with a short thanks.

Ikuko sighed, watching from the corner of her eye as Darien turned his attention to the nurse and little girl. "They're calling her Hotaru." She whispered quietly.

Darien's brow crinkled in curiosity as he glanced at the purple-haired woman, taking the hint and keep his voice lowered. "What do you mean _calling _her?"

Ikuko frowned. "It isn't her real name. She was in an accident downtown yesterday, I imagine not much earlier than Serena fainted." She cast a sorrowful glance at her daughter before shaking her head. "They don't exactly know for sure what happened. But… I've heard a few nurses and paramedics talking about how some of the eyewitnesses informed the police that she came out of a store and ran to her mother who was across an intersection. About that time a driver had lost control of his delivery truck and jumped out, letting the vehicle continue on wildly. With all the traffic and people that was hurrying to get out of the way, the woman panicked and raced out into the street toward her daughter. Most of the stories differ after that but the basic story is that she miraculously made it to the girl without being injured and walked them out of the way."

"Where is her mother then?"

Ikuko darted her eyes away from where Saji was pulling out the few children toys and books she'd managed to find at home to look at Darien. His eyes were dark, narrowing in on the girl in deep thought. _'He knows she's not there for Hotaru,' _she realized, _'he just hopes it's not true.'_ "…A few floors down in intensive care. She's in a coma. No one is exactly sure why because she was only a little bruised and scratched up. No wounds to the head or anything life threatening. She's just…gone."

He was scowling now, the lines on his face tight. "And Hotaru? What is wrong with her?" he asked, continuing on their whispered conversation.

"Broken arm and that cut on her cheek. That's all physically wrong from what I understand." She whispered back somberly as she watched Saji try to coach the girl into looking at a few of Sammy's old books. The girl simply scowled at the woman. "But… she's withdrawing from everyone. Has a terrific fear of nurses and doctors. She was in hysteria when the paramedics pulled her away from her mother's body."

"Acute stress disorder." Darien said suddenly, the robotic and simply informative voice startling Ikuko slightly. If she had looked closer, she would have seen how his eyes told of how much he understood what the child was going through, but instead all she saw was an emotionless man. "It is also known as simply emotional shock. It develops within one month after an individual experiences or sees an event involving a threat or actual death, serious injury, or physical violation to the individual or others, and responded to this event with strong feelings of fear, helplessness or horror. If it continues after four weeks, it has developed into Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder."

He looked out of the corner of his eye. "What are they estimating her age as?"

"Between three and four. Five at the very most." The woman responded dazedly.

Darien nodded in agreement; that was what he had assumed her to be as well. "People, especially children in Hotaru's age group, experience helplessness and have a lack of usual responsiveness. They also experience a higher generalized fear, nightmares and other sleep disturbances, avoid or become alarmed by reminders of the incident, they have a subjective sense of numbing, detachment, or an absence of emotional responsiveness. They startle at loud and or sudden noises and can suffer from anxiety, confusion, and or depression. Some children are even known to have regressive symptoms such as a return to bed-wetting or a loss of motor and or speech skills." He frowned, looking at the girl closely. "…She is mute?"

Ikuko blinked a few times as she desperately tried to absorb all that the young man said. "She is. How--how did you know all that off the top of your head?"

He smirked a little even though his eyes were still sad and distant. "Pre-Med major."

She squinted her eyes, assessing him. "Forgive me but …you seem a little young to be able to take classes that would allow you to have such knowledge so readily."

He shrugged a little and began to feel uncomfortable under the woman's intense stare. _'Why do people always have to look at me like that when I say things like that? What is so odd about studying and keeping my knowledge?'_ "I am in a few advanced classes."

"But you are only what? Eighteen? You should only be a first-year student in college and even then…"

He frowned as she trailed off. "Correct. I attend Tokyo University as a first year. However, because of the previous school I attended, I already had a few credits and was allowed to take more classes focusing on my major. Then my testing scores…" He shook his head. "I am a special case, I guess you could say."

Ikuko shook her head in wonder but didn't say anything else on the subject when she noticed how uneasy he was. "You were correct in any case. Hotaru hasn't spoken to anyone since she was brought in." She frowned and nodded her head to the girl. "Thus the reason why people are calling her Hotaru and not her name."

"Why _Hotaru _though?" Darien whispered.

"When they found her, she was repeatedly telling her mother she was sorry and would be a good firefly. They think that it was perhaps a nickname and figured she would react to it. She _does _respond and listen when she is called such so it has stuck." Ikuko sighed. "I think the saddest thing about all this is that her mother didn't have any identification on her. No one knows her name and thus cannot find any other family since Hotaru is unwilling to offer any information."

"Have they run blood tests to see if they match any records here in the hospital? If they don't match, they would probably be able to acquire permission to do so in other hospitals in Tokyo." Darien said absently.

"We have on her mother. None at this hospital are a match." Nurse Saji whispered suddenly, startling both Darien and Ikuko into seeing she was standing practically in front of them. The red-head sighed, looking over her shoulder to see Hotaru staring down at the book in front of her but not touching it. "Mrs. Tsukino, would you be willing to try to get Hotaru interested in anything? I tried everything I could to convince her to look at the books but she refuses. Same thing with the toys."

The purple-haired woman chewed on her lip thoughtfully. _'I really don't want to see that little girl isolate herself like this. …I guess it could help distract me from Serena's condition as well.' _She nodded her head and walked closer, the duo behind her watching closely. "Hotaru?"

The girl's head snapped up and she scooted away from the book as if it had leaped up. Ikuko winced internally as she pulled a chair away from Serena's bedside and sat it and herself beside Hotaru's bed. "Hotaru, I was wondering if you would like me to read a story for you?" She carefully picked up the book in front of the girl and looked at it. "I remember this one… It is one of my daughter's favorites." She looked up with a fond smile. "Did your mommy ever tell you about the rabbit in the moon?"

Hotaru's brow furrowed as she stared at the woman. _'I think her name was …Ikuko. She's that lady's mommy.' _She glanced to the other bed, looking at the female with all the yellow hair. Earlier when she was brought here Nurse Saji said that the lady had been asleep since last night so she must be really tired. She got that way sometimes too and would sleep for a long time in the Gates of Time.

"Hotaru? Have you heard about the rabbit in the moon?"

The girl blinked, looking back at the Ikuko woman. She seemed nice and Nurse Saji said that she brought all those books and toys for _her_ but… she didn't know if Ikuko would _stay _nice. Nurse Saji might not stay nice either, so she was always really nervous now. Everyone might all end up like the mean lady with brown eyes. Hotaru quickly learned that not many people stayed nice in this place. At first they would talk to her quiet and slow -like they thought she couldn't understood them- but when she still wouldn't talk to them they would get angry and leave, sometimes saying mean things about how she was a "brat". She didn't know what a "brat" was but it didn't sound very good.

Hotaru frowned, looking down at the book the lady was still holding out to her. It had a bunny on it, hitting something that kind of looked familiar. She thought it was some type of food but she wasn't sure. She looked up at the woman, deciding to take a chance, and slowly shook her head once. _'Puu never told me about any rabbit in the moon. A princess in the moon but never a rabbit.'_

Ikuko smiled softly. "Would you like me to read you a story about that rabbit?"

Hotaru chewed on her lip before she hesitantly nodded once. The woman beamed in reply and opened the book. "All right then. Let's get comfy first, okay?"

Hotaru rose an eyebrow as the strange woman shifted a few times in the chair before stopping. When she looked up, her own eyebrow raised, Hotaru followed her example and laid down. Before she had time to pull up the blanket herself, Nurse Saji was suddenly there pulling and tugging at the coverings until they were all the way to her chin. Just as quickly as the nurse was there, she walked away with a smile and a "Good night, Hotaru".

"Once upon a time there was a little rabbit…"

Hotaru looked over at the man as Ikuko began reading. He was still standing in the same place, looking at her even as Nurse Saji started telling him something about "visiting hours". The red-headed lady nodded, satisfied that the man had been listening, before giving Hotaru a quick wave that had the girl staring at her emotionlessly back.

As the woman walked out of the room, Hotaru shifted her eyes back at the man. He was still staring but now that Nurse Saji wasn't in the way she could see that there was something different about his eyes. She didn't know what it was but they didn't look so dark anymore. And he wasn't staring at her suspiciously anymore either, just curiously and with something else she didn't recognize.

"…all alone. He really wanted a friend so he decided…"

She narrowed her amethyst eyes as the man gave her a smile before turning around to face the small table underneath the box Nurse Saji called a "T.V.". When the man moved away a few seconds later, there was a purple flower lying on the table. Her brow creased in confusion as she watched him silently picked up one of the chairs from the table and walked over to the lady with yellow hair.

She glanced at Ikuko, wondering if she saw the flower too, but the lady was still reading. When she looked back at the man he was sitting on the other side of the lady's bed by the "curtain"-thing. As he gazed down at the lady, she finally understood what he was so worried about: the lady. He must have wanted her to wake up. Now that she thought about it she remembered him saying something about wanting to see if she was awake so he must be sad that she wasn't.

He said something quietly to the girl now with a smirk on his face. Seconds later he was sighing and brushing the bangs out of the lady's eyes like Puu used to do for her. Involuntarily tears began prickling the back of her eyes, so Hotaru quickly looked away from the sight before anyone could see the emotions. She had already promised herself she wouldn't cry anymore. She had already been crying enough and she was just so tired now.

"…After that didn't work the rabbit decided that he could make mochi…"

She sighed, listening the Ikuko's soft voice continue the story that she hadn't been listening to. She felt bad for a second before deciding she could probably look at the pictures later and understand what happened. Hotaru didn't even notice as her eyes began to get heavy, the edges of her hearing growing fuzzy. Within minutes she was blissfully asleep, unaware that Ikuko had finished the book and was quietly sitting things up for her to look at and play with later. She also didn't know that Darien was gazing at her thoughtfully, a sad frown etched into his expression as he idly rubbed the back of the lady's hand he held.

* * *

Minako finally glanced up as the comments slowed down, all information being told in a series of lies and half-truths that didn't surprise her at all; she expected them now that she knew what plan the imposer was following. Yet even with all her expectations she couldn't stop her flinch as the final decision was made.

"I will guide you through the process." Faux-Serenity offered to Luna a few minutes later. "It is the very least I could do now that you have offered me your home when I had none."

The golden-haired woman smirked slightly, looking at the outraged looked in Rei's eyes as Luna quietly said that _her _home was her monarch's home. _'Oh please,' _her thoughts grumbled. _'Don't tell me you didn't expect that, dear Rei. Luna's a lying, conniving woman who is nothing more than a lackey to one woman's whims now. Telling the "dear, beloved Princess Serenity" that this shrine is her home is nothing. Though I have to wonder what your Grandfather will say…'_

Minako sighed sadly, watching Luna beginning to chant with the silver-haired woman beside her. _'Of course, you are now her lackey too, Rei. I've seen your ruby. I do not think there is _any _hope for you anymore. You're no more than a lackey to that woman and it is only reinforced with this process. You'll do anything to destroy Serena because that is what this woman has molded you to do. The only hope I have anymore,'_ Minako looked over at Ami, knowing that she was the only one who saw the girl's silent tears as she looked out of the window, _'is Ami. She's the only hope left for Serena now. I don't know what I can do to help now that that damn woman is here. She's telling lies I know are false but I can't say anything about them. Not without repercussions, at least. And those repercussions…'_

She sighed again, silently standing up before moving to sit across from Ami. She gave the girl a sad smile that the bluenette didn't even bother mustering up in return. Minako couldn't blame her friend _-- 'if I'm even worthy enough to be her friend. I highly doubt it. Artemis was right about me…'. _She looked up into the window between her and Ami, not at all surprised to see the moon glaring down at them.

'_I'm so sorry Serenity. But… I can't do anything. There is no other choice in this.'_ She felt the tears finally leaking down her face as a glow erupted in the room. _'I'm trapped, Serenity. For ten thousand years I have been no more than a lackey. No more than the two pathetic women behind me, their strings being manipulated and pulled. I __**can't **__escape, Serenity, and I never will unless I die.'_

Minako jumped to her feet as guilt and a flood of other emotions swelled down on her heart, soul, and conscious. She paused to look behind her, seeing the awed expression on everyone's face, even Ami's (though it did look sorrowful and anguish-filled), as the glow covered everyone in a silvery light. She snorted, pushing open the window and jumping out of the house. No one would follow her, or even notice she was gone for that matter, and she needed _out_ more than anything else right now. Suddenly a humorless smile graced her face as she ran off the shrine grounds without direction. _'I'd even be willing to help Endymion now. Anything to save Serenity…'_

* * *

Done: 9/13/08 9:30 PM-ish.

Posted: 9/13/08 10:00-ish

So… how many of you _are _hating Minako?

To answer possible questions about OCC-ness related to Minako (for my version of her, that is) she is feeling defeated. Her boss, the woman who swore that _Minako _could handle everything dealing with the Senshi and Endymion, suddenly appeared and is telling the Senshi and Luna lies up the kazoo. She doesn't know what to do or what she _can _do anymore and that makes her feel weaker than ever. But with that last sentence you can see where her loyalties truly lie: Serenity.

I must say that the first scene with Hotaru made me so unbelievably sad as I just reread this, even though I wrote that like a week ago. Every time I read it, I'm like "No! Come back for Hotaru, Puu!"

And hey! I didn't _kill _Pluto did I? --sheepish grin-- Technically speaking she is not dead. Just trapped in the gates of time with no way out and no way to get Hotaru. See? Not _dead_.

In a few chapters or so, you should learn just what happened between Motoki and Endy/Darien. How bad he was injured, why he was injured, stuff like that. I'm thinking a flashback but I'm not too sure. And now you know why he transformed in Endy (well, besides anger at the fact Motoki took off with Serena, despite his more-order-than-request not to).

And in --two?-- chapters you should find out just what Luna and everyone else was doing. What the "process" was.

Side note: What exactly _is _the story of the rabbit in the moon? I made the above up with the bunny who wanted friends. I know that some people believe he's pounding mochi but that's about it… _But _everything Darien said about acute stress disorder is true! I looked it up in a medical book/ website and paraphrased.

Tiger Celeste.


	21. Chapter 21

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

Woohoo! Emerge to Reveal officially has _200 reviews_! Thank you, every single one of you readers and reviewers. Special shout out djo for being the 200th reviewer.

Now this chapter is super long (a full 27 Microsoft Word, font 10 pages worth. Jeez.), so I'm not going to delay any of you with a long A/N. I just want to say that I'm glad that not many of you _don't _hate Minako. While I was getting further into the story, I'd started getting worried that she'd have of an anti-fan base, I guess I could say.

Hehe, I'm glad that a few of you have mentioned you like Darien's protectiveness… It'll be coming more in the future. And those that requested Dare/Sere interaction… well, you got a whole a _ton_. Like the whole chapter. And, really, isn't it hightime they got some scenes together? _I _think it is.

Oh **pandaslippers**: _Squee_! Thank you for calling my story "epic". That makes it sound so more special than it really is. Thank you and welcome to Emerge to Reveal! And forgive me for saying that I'm glad your hooked. Hehe.

And, **Garnet Sky:** Yes, Rei is more malevolent. Probably more than she was in the anime _and _the manga combined, actually. But there is a reason so don't fret!

Enjoy this next chapter, everyone!

* * *

"_**Ikuko, I'm sorry but we just can't afford it."**_

"_**But, surely we could cut back on a few things. Serena could go without playing her arcade games as often and Shingo wouldn't be able to join his club soccer this season--"**_

Serena groaned quietly as she back to awareness. Her head was pounding far worse than it had ever had in her entire life. She moaned again, her eyes flying open on their own accord. Seconds later she squeezed them shut at seeing the blinding white light overhead. _'Okay. Lets not do that again. At least for awhile.'_

"_**You know that isn't fair, Ikuko. We can't make Serena or Shingo suffer like that."**_

She tried to move her limbs only to end up grimacing in pain. Every muscle, every _bone _ached, her back was on fire, and she couldn't move her upper body into an upright position. _'What happened? Why do I hurt so much? The last thing I remember is watching the television.' _Her brow furrowed in confusion. She couldn't remember what she had seen on the television. It had been sad, she remembered, so unbelievably sad and she'd cried but _what _was it? _'Don't dwell; it'll probably come back later. Focus. What happened after? Let's see, I remember leaning on Darien and crying… but then, what? And where am I? It's too bright to be my room.'_

"…_**I know it isn't fair Kenji. But what about Hotaru? It isn't fair for her to go to an orphanage just because her mother's in a coma!"**_

"_**I know but we just **_**can't **_**afford it. There's no way we would be able to support three children living with us when it's already a strain to support the two we have. And we don't know when her mother is going to wake up. If she ever does."**_

Serena's brow burrowed. _'That sounds like Mom and Dad but their voices are all echo-y. At least I know I'm not all alone .'_ She strained her ears to here anymore of what they were saying but now all she heard was beeping. Very loud beeping that kept going on and on. _'Jeez, you'd think I was in a hospital or something. __**Hospital**__!'_

She gasped, opening her eyes and finally managing to fly into a sitting position. Immediately on doing so she cried out in pain and flopped down into the bed in an ungraceful heap. Undeterred, she looked around frantically to see she _really _was lying on a hospital bed and there _really _was an IV stuck into her right hand. She nervously followed her eyes up the line, seeing two drip bags attached it. _'How in the world did I get here? What happened after I was crying on Darien?'_

"Dear, dear. Calm down. It's all right."

Her eyes snapped over the frazzled voice, seeing a red-headed nurse hovering over her worriedly. Once the woman saw that her patient's attention was on her, she tried to smile reassuringly. "Calm down, Serena. You're okay. You're just in the hospital and my name is Nurse Saji."

Serena winced as the stabbing pain in her back exploded when she tried to turn her body toward the nurse. She sucked in a deep breath as it occurred to her _why _her back hurt so much. _'The wounds Rei gave me! How am I supposed to explain them!? They can't know those wounds were made on purpose. They'll start asking questions I can't answer.' _"M-my wounds…" She stuttered with wide, fearful eyes.

The woman gave an understanding smile as she changed one of the drip bags. "It's fine, dear. Your friend already told us all about them."

Serena, instead of calming down as the woman expected, began to breath heavier and frantically clutched her chest with her non-IV-ed left hand. "_Friend?_ W-what did she say?"

Nurse Saji frowned, her brown eyes confused. "She? No, no. It was a _male_. He told your parents and the doctor all about the dreadful youma attack you were caught up in. Don't worry though, they understood that you didn't want to worry them by going to a hospital. They are just glad you knew someone who could patch you up and look after you."

Serena winced as she tried to sit up again. She couldn't get far because her whole upper body was stiff, unbending to her movements. "I-I don't understand…" she whispered as the nurse pushed her back down.

"Calm down Serena." Saji repeated soothingly as she let go of the girl's shoulders. "Try not to strain your body by sitting up. You're whole abdomen has been bandaged to avoid pulling your stitches again. Now, I know you're confused so take a deep breath and ask your questions one at a time. I'll answer them the best I can. Unless, of course, you want your parents here instead…"

"_**But Kenji--"**_

"_**I'm sorry, Ikuko, but no. I understand where you are coming from and I **_**do **_**agree with you. Hotaru shouldn't have to go to an orphanage just because her mother is in a coma. But, remember, she's not leaving until the end of the week. At the earliest. That's still plenty of time for the hospital to find other family. She might not have to go to an orphanage if they manage to find a, I don't know, father or a grandmother. An aunt even."**_

Serena shook her head as her parent's conversation continued to flood into the room. She knew it was important and she shouldn't interfere, even if she didn't understand what was going on. She looked back at the nurse who was silently looking toward the door. "W-which friend told everyone that… Nurse Saji?"

Saji frowned at the conversation outside before looking down at the bedridden girl. "A male, dearie. Hmm… He's about eighteen and-- Darien! Oh, I can't believe I almost forgot his name."

"Where--where is he?"

Nurse Saji smiled at Serena's eager tone. "The doctors decided that your roommate should see her mother. Something about regaining her confidence, I think. I didn't really understand their reasoning but, anyways, Darien volunteered to escort the girl to her mother's room and stay with her until she comes back." The nurse suddenly grinned slyly. "You know… he has been here almost the whole entire time these past two days."

"_Two _days?" Serena whispered in shock as she eyed the woman disbelievingly. "I've been here for two days?"

"Yes. Well, almost; you were brought in late Friday night and it's now Sunday afternoon. Everyone was getting worried when you didn't wake up yesterday morning but you surprised us all when you woke up about noon. You were pretty disoriented so I imagine you don't remember it. Anyways, while you were awake the doctor examined you and determined it was simply your exhaustion that was keeping you asleep. We removed most of the monitors when the doctors gave the okay and everyone decided to let you rest as long as your body needed to."

Serena released a yawn at the woman's words. _'Is that why I feel so… what's the word? Lethargic?'_ "Wait. Darien told everyone I was caught up in a youma attack?" she questioned abruptly as the rest of the nurse's words were finally comprehended.

Saji blinked, nodding slowly. "Yes, you were one of those unfortunate victims. He also told everyone about how you went to him afterwards to avoid worrying your parents and how he stitched you up. So you won't need to worry about hiding them anymore, dear."

Serena blew out a relieved breath and finally let herself relax completely against her pillows. _'Thank goodness! I'm going to have to think of a good apology for him. He has no idea how much that lie saved me.'_ She absently watched the nurse fuss around the room before she began listening to her parent's conversation for lack of anything else to do. _'What in the world are they talking about again? Who is Hotaru really?'_

"…_**You've heard everyone as well, Kenji. There's no one to care for Hotaru and she **_**will **_**be sent to an orphanage if no one steps forward to take her."**_

"_**Come on, Ikuko. Since when have you been so pessimistic? There's always hope."**_

Serena frowned as her mother began to do an odd combination of crying and laughing at the same time. _**"I don't know. I guess I'm just so worried about Serena and now I can't help but feel for that little girl. She's so small and she'll be all alone in the world until her mother wakes up."**_

"_**Come on, dear. Lets get you some tea from the cafeteria. It'll help you calm down."**_

Serena frowned in confusion as her parent's conversation faded away down the halls. She looked over at the nurse who was folding up the blanket at the end of her bed. "Nurse Saji? Who's Hotaru?"

Saji looked up with a sad, peculiar smile. "Everyone is asking that question, it seems. Hotaru is your roommate, you know, the one I said Darien took to her mother?" When Serena gave a nod, she continued on. "She's a little girl who was in that accident downtown. Well, I'm not sure if you heard about it or not because it happened the day you were brought in, but a driver lost control of his delivery truck. Not many people were hurt but… Hotaru's mother is in a coma and Hotaru herself in going through emotional shock. Hasn't said a word to anyone since the paramedics brought her in. We actually don't even know her name, some of the paramedics just took to calling her Hotaru because she kept telling her mother she'd be a good firefly."

Serena blinked rapidly as her eyes began to feel heavy. _'No, I don't want to fall asleep now. I want to know more about Hotaru!' _"Is she really going to an orphanage?" Against the blonde's will, a yawn broke out and seconds later her eyes grew unfocused.

"Can't say." The red-headed nurse mused sadly, bringing Serena's gaze back to her. "They are still looking for other family to take care of her. It is practically impossible when the mother is unconscious and the child doesn't talk though. Neither can offer information."

"Hmm…" Serena frowned sadly, a crease in her brow. "I really hope she doesn't."

"Me neither." Nurse Saji's voice was soft as Serena yawned again. "Please don't mention any of this to anyone, all right, Serena? I really shouldn't be telling anyone in the first place because of all the rumors flying around this place. But, I have a feeling you'll be trustworthy."

Serena smiled sleepily. "I promise I won't say anything. It'd make Hotaru sad."

Saji chuckled lightly as she smoothed down Serena's blankets. "I knew you'd be trustworthy."

Serena nodded, a tired "hmm.." coming from the back of her throat. Both women were silent for a few minutes until the door suddenly opened. Through her bleary eyes, Serena watched a young girl enter. She was obviously a patient; the pale green hospital gown she was wearing and the purple cast on her left arm evidence of that. _'This must be the infamous Hotaru.'_ The blonde frowned as she noticed the blank expression the child wore. It was too solemn and serious for a little girl to have, especially when the girl was so young. Without even a glance in the direction of Serena or the nurse, Hotaru headed toward her bed.

Serena shook her head lightly to bring her eyes into focus before looking at the man that had entered just after the somber child. He was tall, young-looking, and wearing a pair of blue jeans and a plain black T-shirt. _'Darien.' _He, like Hotaru, didn't spare a glance toward the duo by the window as he followed the little girl. Serena watched curiously as he rooted around on top of the nightstand by the hospital bed, somewhat surprised to see that Hotaru had already seated herself onto said bed and underneath her sheets. _'How in the world did she do that with a broken arm and no help?'_

The blonde eyed the girl wonderingly for a minute before she was distracted by Darien finally picking a book. As she caught a glimpse of it, she realized it was one of many she had had as a little kid. The tell-tell big black _S _on the back cover had been her signature when she was younger. _'Mom must have brought some things to keep her occupied.'_ she thought to herself, instantly glad her dear mother had done such a thing. _'It must be awful to be stuck in here like she is. Especially with nothing to do and unable to talk to her mother…'_

Darien handed the book over to Hotaru who took it without even a hint of a smile. The girl glanced down at the book before looking back at Darien with a raised eyebrow. He chuckled. "Sorry, Hotaru. That's the only book you haven't looked at yet."

Serena smiled tiredly, even if she was somewhat offended because they were _her _books. She thought she had a great taste in literature, even when she was little. She watched Darien give Hotaru a small smile that caused her breath to involuntarily catch in her throat. _'He's being so nice and caring to her…'_

Finally, as if sensing the soft gaze on him, Darien glanced over to see Serena watching. He flashed her a relieved smile and patted Hotaru's bed before straightening up. Serena found she couldn't fight back another yawn anymore and when she managed to pry her eyes open again, he was beside her. "Hey Odango." He murmured as he pulled a chair closer and sat down in it.

"Hey…jerk." she whispered back as her eyes fluttered closed again. _'So sleepy. I'm starting to think the Nurse did something to me. What exactly was in that drip bag?'_

"We were all getting pretty worried about you."

'_Why does Darien sound so far away?'_ "Even…" she yawned again, breaking her sentence. "you?"

"Yeah. Even me."

'_If wonder if he realizes he's holding my hand.'_ "Nice to know you have a heart somewhere."

He chuckled quietly and squeezed Serena's un-IV-ed hand, making her realize that he _did _know he was holding it. "Just let yourself go to sleep, Odango. We'll talk later."

"I'm…not…tired." she whispered as she opened her eyes again to look at him. He was staring down at her with a little smile, not unlike the one he'd given Hotaru. She unconsciously smiled back. "See? Not tired."

"Somehow I don't believe you." He whispered back just as quietly. He let go of her hand to brush her bangs out of her eyes. "Don't fight it anymore, Serena."

Her smiled widened. "Never could with you." She was barely aware of the long-forgotten Nurse Saji's giggle as the door to the room opened and closed. The blonde cast her eyes from her companion to see Hotaru still on her bed, looking at both herself and Darien. A smile curved her lips as she closed her eyes one last time. "Good night, Darien. Good night, Hotaru."

Darien smiled, looking over his shoulder to see Hotaru gazing at Serena in bewilderment. "Good night, Serena." He whispered as he looked back at the teenager, relief obvious in his eyes. "Sleep well."

* * *

The next time Serena woke up she felt a million times better. Yes, her whole body felt sore and her throat raw _but _her back wasn't screaming at her at the slightest movement and a headache wasn't pounding between her eyes anymore. In her opinion that was enough to put a smile on her face. _'Now if only I could move my upper body. Was it really that necessary to bind my stomach?'_ She frowned in thought until catching sight of the armchair still pulled up beside her bed and the familiar man sitting in it. Darien's nose was practically buried in a pile of paperwork clutched between his hands and a textbook was open across his lap.

"That would probably be… easier at a desk, you--you know." She winced as her attempt at sarcasm turned out as no more than a whisper and ended up cracking. "W-wait. I can do better than-- than that."

Darien was smirking. "Well, I'm glad to see you're back to your normal self, Odango." He paused as he placed his work inside his textbook and set it on the ground beside him. He looked back up with a genuine, if teasing, grin. "Don't worry about it though. I'm sure you can't do any better. Hospital or not."

"_Jerk!_"She was overcome with a coughing fit before she could say anymore. After the episode passed, she was hunched over onto her chest as much as she could in her predicament and rapidly blinking as she tried to clear her bleary eyes. "Ow."

Darien frowned, bending down again to dig through his book bag that sat on the other side of his work. Seconds later he had a new bottle of water in hand and was hanging it to the girl. "Here you go. This should help."

Serena took it with a smile and drank it greedily, hoping it would help her throat and mouth. When she finally had enough, the bottle was over half gone and she felt even better. "Thank you. I really needed that." she said softly. She was pleased to note that her voice sounded much better than it had. _'Then again, anything sounds better than my previous frog croak'._

Darien shook his head as she replaced the cap and tried to return the bottle. "No, keep it. You'll need it later."

She gave him a grateful smile and placed the bottle on the nightstand by the IV-stand on her right side. When she looked back at Darien, she caught sight of Hotaru's bed over his shoulder. It was empty. "Where's Hotaru?" She asked quietly as she absently studied the bed. It still looked messy so she must of only left a little bit ago.

"The doctors are examining her again." Was the simple reply as Darien slouched back in the chair and crossed his arms. Seconds later he uncrossed his arms and re-crossed them in the other way. Serena frowned as she realized he was _fidgeting_.

"Are you all right?"

He started at the question and nodded his head. Serena eyed him curiously as he looked around the room with an indescribable expression. "I'm fine. Hospitals just bring back a lot of memories, is all."

Her expression cleared into a smile as she remembered what Nurse Saji had told her. "Then why have you been here almost the whole time these past _two _days?"

He turned his head away but not before the light in the room revealed his slight blush to Serena. "It's late Monday morning so you have been in here for two and a half days now." He offered before gazing at her out of the corner of his eye. "Which brings me to the question of shouldn't I be the one asking _you _if you are all right and not the other way around?"

"I'm fine." Serena replied as she absently began plucking at the crocheted blanket stretched out over her. If she remembered correctly, it was one her Grandmother had made. _'Mom must have wanted me to have something from home to make me more comfortable.'_

"Tell me the truth, Odango." Darien said, knocking Serena out of her thoughts. When she looked up, she saw him staring at her intently, a frown etched into his face. "You just can't feel fine. You've been out of it for days."

"No, seriously." She insisted softly. "I feel better than I did last time. I mean, sure, my body feels like it got ran over with a truck, then struck by lightning--" She cut herself off with gasp, realizing what she had said. "I-I didn't mean that. I--I-- you-- she." She gave a choked gasp as everything came back to her in a rush. The fainting, Darien figuring out she was Sailor Moon, and most importantly-- "_Makoto_. Oh god, oh god. I'm a horrible person! I forgot all about her!"

"Serena, Serena. Calm down." Darien said urgently as he grasped the girl's un-IV-ed hand. Serena didn't even realize she had started to cry uncontrollably until he applied more pressure on his grip. "_Odango_." he called in an attempt to break through her haze when she didn't answer. She gave him a glare that was more miserable than annoyed and he gave her a weak smile that looked like a grimace.

"I--I can't." She choked out amidst her sobs as she looked away from Darien's soft eyes. "I _killed _Makoto and--and here I am happily joking because I forgot all about her! I'm a horrible_, horrible _person."

"Stop it, Serena. You are not a horrible person. You _didn't _kill Makoto and it's not your fault you forgot for a few minutes." He insisted firmly but she only continued to cry. "_Serena_."

Shame and embarrassment engulfed the blonde as she hurriedly tried to pull her hand out of his. She gave a harsh laugh when he wouldn't let go. "Let me go Darien. You're _wrong_. I'm a murderer." Her breath seized in her throat as she realized what she said. "I--I'm a _murderer_." Her breathing became shallow and she sounded even more miserable as she roughly continued. "Let me go… let me _go_. I…I don't need your pity or what--whatever this is. A murderer doesn't deserve any kindness."

Darien frowned darkly at Serena's words and absently let go of her captive hand. She gave a tight smile in his direction, expecting him to leave, before burying her face in her hands. "Just… just go _away _Darien." It was quiet for a few moments except for Serena's sobs and harsh breaths before Darien took action.

Serena tried to pull away when she felt hands grasp her wrists and lower them to her sides but it was all in vain. Darien's hold was like steel and too gentle and caring; he wasn't going to let go of her anytime soon. She opened her hazy eyes to see he was moving closer, making her lean away nervously. Even when her head was pushing the pillow back against the wall, he continued to move closer until he was only a foot way.

"Listen to me." he hissed. She gave a whimper at his harsh tone but he only loosened his hold on her wrists slightly. He was gazing at her intently, the dark blue in his eyes almost black but his expression was surprisingly gentle. "It isn't your fault Makoto died, Serena. Do you understand me? It is _not _your fault. We both saw the news footage. It was an unfortunate incident, yes, but Makoto did what she did to save everyone. I have no doubt she thought it was for the best."

Serena's eyes widened in disbelief and she tried to pull her wrists out of his grip once more. "No, no! You're wrong! She _didn't_!" In an attempt to escape his dark and serious expression, she turned her head away and squeezed her eyes shut, forcing a handful of tears to escape down her cheeks. "You heard the reporter, Darien! You heard what he said! Even he thought it was my fault and he's right! It _is_!"

When he let go and stopped pining her wrists, Serena hesitantly opened her eyes. Darien was still hovering only a foot away but was taking deep breaths now, no doubt in an attempt to calm himself down. She opened her mouth to say something but at the same time, his eyes snapped open. She gulped and shut her mouth, forgetting what she was going to say in light of his understanding stare. "Listen to what I am saying, Serena." he said quietly. "It is not your fault Makoto died, I know that and you should realize that too. But, if you are going to insist on blaming yourself, extend that blame to _me _as well. All right?"

The blonde gasped in disbelief, shaking her head frantically enough for a few of her tears to fly off her cheeks. "B-but you couldn't have known what she was going to do! You… you just don't _understand_,Darien!"

He let all his breath out in a rush and leaned closer to grab a hold of her shoulders. He was only inches away from her face now, his eyes dark with mysteries. "Look into my eyes, Serena. Can you honestly tell me that you believe any of that? You say I couldn't have known what she was going to do and that's as true as the fact that you couldn't have known either."

"I--I should have known!" She protested frantically, sniffing a few times miserably. "I _should _have known!"

"It would not have changed anything." Darien said softly before a frown suddenly formed. "Tell me something, Serena. If you had been in Jupiter's position, a horde of youma draining civilians around you, your fellow Senshi being unable to do anything to truly stop them, would you have sacrificed yourself like she did if you thought doing so would kill the youma as well?"

"Of course!" Serena snapped in indignation. "That would have been the… only… thing… to do…" She stopped, looking at Darien incredulously but unable to think of anything to say.

"Exactly. I told you, she did what she did to _save _everyone."

"I--I could have stopped her! If I have been there, I could have done something!" She whispered, a sob welling up in her throat. "If… if I was there, she wouldn't of _died_!"

"The same can be said of me, Serena." Darien murmured as he let go of one of her shoulders to wipe the tears off her face. "If I had been there, I could have done something -_anything_- to help."

She stuttered, her mind whirling. "Y-you couldn't have done anything, Darien. You-- you didn't have to be there like _I _did."

He eyed her for a moment before shaking his head in disbelief. "You honestly believe that I didn't have to be there." He looked into her eyes and smirked at the understanding lurking in them. "Let me spell in out for you, Odango. I. Am. Tuxedo. Mask."

She was silent for a few minutes as she stared at him in sheer incredulity. She licked her lips a few times, tasting the tears on them before she finally gained the gumption to speak. "Lying to me about that isn't helping anything, Darien! You are _not _Tuxedo Mask." she insisted firmly. "Me and me alone is to blame for Makoto's death. I wasn't there when I should have been!"

"Believe what you want about me being Tuxedo Mask or not, Serena. I can prove that I am a thousand times over." Darien said slowly, his eyes narrowed as he completely let go of her shoulders and leaned away. "Us being in the hospital and the possibility of someone seeing are the only things stopping me from transforming right here and now. As for blaming yourself… as long as you say that you are the one to blame, you have to say I am as well. We are one in the same, Serena."

She shook her head, tears leaking out of her eyes faster. "_No_! We're not the same. I'm a murder and you're not! I don't deserve anything nice you have to say about me! I deserve to die just like Makoto did!"

Serena's eyes widened in shock as she realized what she had said but Darien's reaction startled her even more. She only managed to hear him suck in a sharp breath before he was suddenly there, inches away from her face again and her chin grasped firmly in one of his hands. She winced, noticing that his eyes were even darker and more narrowed than they were just seconds again.

"Why do you insist on doing this?" He growled and then his eyes were suddenly flooding with gold like a starburst. Serena's mouth dropped open, wondering if she was truly seeing the gold or not, before Darien abruptly shook his head and his eyes were their familiar dark blue again. Seconds later he was moving away and dropping her chin like it had caught on fire. "Look around the room," he said a full minute later, "and see what is around you."

She was silent, observing the man's eyes for another moment, before deciding the gold had been her imagination. When she nodded, he smiled slightly and moved to her left side to let her see the room unobstructed. As the room was revealed, she gasped as she took everything in. Almost every inch of her side of the room was filled with flowers and gifts, cards and balloons.

Her gaze snapped back to Darien as he began to speak again. "Most of those gifts are from the regulars at the arcade. When Motoki told them you were in the hospital, almost every single one visited. There are people who care about you, Serena. A _lot _of people. You can't do this to yourself. Or to them."

"I…" Her chin wobbled. "I didn't mean to say I should die…"

He nodded at her words before looking over his shoulder at the door. Seeing nothing, he turned back around and with a flick of his wrist, a red rose was in his hand. He gave Serena a smile as he offered it to her. "You can try to deny and hide from the world all you want, Odango, but I _won't _let you. I…I've already been down the road you're one and it doesn't end up getting better. It gets _worse_." He murmured. "Believe me when I say that you aren't a murder and you deserve every single nice thing people have to say about you. And never say you deserve to die again. Do you understand me? _Never_."

Serena stared at the rose, knowing that if she accepted it she was also accepting the fact that she _wasn't _to blame for Makoto's death. She chewed on her lip, peering up at Darien through her lashes to see he was staring at her intently, his eyes telling her want he wanted. She sighed, grasping the flower hesitantly.

Darien grinned as he let go to watch Serena handle the rose gingerly. "Don't worry, Odango. I made sure it didn't have any thorns. Or steel tips for that matter."

A few tears escaped Serena's eyes as she gave an ironic laugh. Here was her savior saving her once again; only this time it was from herself. She looked up with a slight smile on her face. "D-Darien… I'm sorry."

The dark-haired man gazed at Serena silently as a stray thought traveled through his mind. Without giving himself time to doubt or think of the repercussions, he leaned down and kissed her forehead. It was short, sweet, and he was pulling back after only a few seconds but he hoped it would convey his message. As he pulled away, he made sure to catch Serena's eyes. They had gotten impossibly wide and were clouded in confusion and something else he couldn't name so, to make sure she understood, he said what was running through his mind. "Remember. People care about you. Just like I do."

She nodded slowly, her face still burning with a blush and wondering what on Earth had possessed Darien to do such a thing. They gazed at one another for a minute before he suddenly grinned and patted her on the head. _'No doubt because my 'odangos' were replaced with a single braid some time or another and he can't pull on them'_. she fumed to herself silently as she glared and swatted his hand away. Unfortunately for her, Darien simply laughed and began walking toward the door. When he was at the threshold, he stopped and looked back at the bedridden girl. Serena eyed him, noting that even if there was a smile on his face, his gaze was closed off.

"I know you probably want your parents with you but neither are at the hospital right now." He informed her. "Your father has been gone since last night and your mother left earlier to run errands she said she was behind in."

"So that's where they are…" Serena mused before giggling softly. "I had been wondering why I wasn't being smothered by them."

Darien gave a half-smirk. "I'm going to tell the head nurse on duty that you're awake and alert but do you need anything in the meantime?"

Serena's brow furrowed and she chewed on her lip in thought before slowly shaking her head. "No, I don't think I need anything. …Just time to think about everything, I guess.

"All right then, Odango." He replied as he pulled the heavy door open. He had just been about to close the door behind his retreating figure when Serena's voice distracted him.

"Darien! _Wait_!"

He popped his head back in the door to see Serena had sat up slightly in her bed, an anxious look on her face. "What is it, Serena? Something wrong?"

She opened her mouth before she reddened again. "I--I…" She stopped, looking down at the rose she still held before looking back up. "I kind of forgot to thank you."

Darien's brow crinkled in confusion before he walked all the way back into the room and leaned against the closed door. "For what?"

"For everything. Like the conversation we just had." She answered quietly and Darien could see her hand tightening around the flower. "I… I need time to think about that but what you said helped. Then… I want to thank you for telling everyone I was just a normal victim in a youma attack. You saved me a lot by not telling them the truth. No one can know Rei was the one who hurt me…"

Darien stared at the girl solemnly. "You should have known I wouldn't tell anyone the truth, Serena. I know that people would have asked too many uncomfortable questions. What happened is a personal matter. Honestly, I had no thoughts of taking you to the hospital in the first place."

She looked up, her eyes swimming with curiosity. "Then why am I here?"

He scowled and Serena's eyes widened at the angry look. "That's something you'll have to ask Motoki. I specifically told him not to bring you to any hospital but on my way back from my apartment, he was driving here. Once I got here, you were already admitted and I couldn't do anything to get you out. He kept telling me that your condition had been getting worse. Crying a lot, he said, and breathing heavily. Then your back started bleeding more."

Serena smiled in appreciation for the arcade worker. "He panicked and did what he thought was right."

"I guess he did." Darien ran a tired hand through his hair and looked away. "I suppose that also means I really do owe him an apology."

Serena frowned suspiciously as she noticed he'd broken their eye contact. "What did you do?"

He looked back at Serena, grinning mischievously all the while, to see she had crossed her arms lightly over her chest. "Don't worry about it, Odango. I didn't hurt him that bad. I mean, he's alive, after all."

She gasped in outrage and leveled a firm glare on him. "What. Did. You. Do?" She ground out between clenched teeth.

His grin widened. "I told you. He's alive." When she didn't lessen her glare, he sighed and rolled his eyes. "Look, Serena. I already said I was going to apologize for what I did, okay? Trust me all ready."

Her glare softened drastically and she was suddenly giving him with a look that was dark with a flood of emotions. "I already do. You know that."

He cleared his throat nervously as she continued to focus her strange gaze on him. He was suddenly missing the glare; _it _was familiar and safe, but that look… he didn't know what to think of it. He jerked his gaze away from hers. "Y-yeah. I'll be going now." He shook his head and moved to pull the door open again, eager to get away from the tension in the room. "Be back in a few." Even after the door closed and he was walking down the hall, Darien could still feel the weight of her strange stare boring into him.

* * *

"…So you will begin the testing tomorrow, if you feel up to it." The man who had introduced himself as Doctor Vigil concluded his speech to Serena. "I know that this may seem soon but your parents were adamant about you not missing more than one week of school and since it is already Monday…"

Serena eyes darted to the man who stood beside the door as the doctor began writing something on his chart. She didn't know why Darien had decided to stay in the room, let alone why the doctor or the white-haired nurse had allowed him to. _'Maybe it's because they know he's going to be a doctor?' _She glared at the side of his face before looking over her shoulder at the nurse that was replacing the bandages on her back. _'This has to be the most embarrassing time of my life.'_ The blonde bemoaned silently. _'And I thought being wheeled to the bathroom was bad enough.'_

She supposed that she should be thankful that Darien wasn't a peeping tom. He'd even stayed in the room with Doctor Vigil while the nurse had helped her in the restroom and replaced her hospital gown with yet another pale green one. Her eyes strayed back to the man again, wondering if he had even moved more than his head in the hour and a half since he'd returned with the doctor and nurse. He certainly hadn't said a word. He just stayed silent, keeping a watch over the room and only adverting his eyes when necessary. She frowned as she noticed the white knuckle grip Darien's hands were in. Now that she thought about it, he had been tense since the doctor had eagerly came in and went on and on about her "miracle recovery".

"Will you quit squirming?" The elderly nurse said as she looked up and gave the blonde a stern look. "I can't work if you insist on moving every half second."

Serena sighed, stilling instantly to avoid further reprimand. Her eyes unwilling slid back to Darien, glaring at the grin on his turned face. _'You know, I wouldn't be squirming if she had just told Darien to leave.'_ The blonde scowled, realizing that the nurse had been the cause for most of her embarrassment.

First the lady had begun with the mortifying questions including (but most definitely not limited to) if she had needed any 'feminine products'. She had gawked in shock, stuttering a "n-no" before realizing Darien had taken it upon himself to stand next to the door _inside _the room. That realization had caused her to flush a deep red and look at him in sheer awkwardness. The jerk had only smirked and adverted his eyes, making Serena notice that the nurse had began pulling at her gown.

_That _was when she decided that it was high time for the man to leave. Her pleading question of "Can you tell him to leave or something?" had startled the woman into seeing Darien was in the room still. When she'd nodded, Serena had sighed in relief before realizing the nurse had taken the "something" route. Instead of taking pity on her and shooing Darien out of the room, the curtain had been pulled in a semblance of privacy.

The _curtain_.

And to make matters worse, the darn thing wasn't even fully closed. Sure, it blocked the window and the foot of her bed but practically the whole left side was visible to anyone (and Darien) who wanted a peek at her back as she sat in the middle of the bed facing the end of said bed. _'I suppose the fact that the nurse is hovering over my back helps as some sort of coverage. But _still_, it's the fact of the matter!' _Serena winced, her thoughts and complaints scattering as the nurse poured something or other on her back that burned.

"Sorry, dear."

Serena bit her lip and squeezed her eyes shut as something rough moved along her upper shoulder seconds later. The sensation was gone within moments but the sting stayed and she had to blink the pain-induced tears out of her eyes. _'Should it really be taking this long?'_ She grumbled to herself as she blinked a few more times. _'I bet it didn't take Darien this long to patch me up.'_

Looking over at said man, he saw he was looking at the nurse intently with a considering frown on his face. _'Jeez, he looks like he's sizing her up.' _Serena thought in amusement before her eyes widened, _'Oh my god! He is! He's assessing her abilities but why would he do that?'_ Before she could further her observation, her hospital door burst open and a young man appeared.

He was around Serena's age, wearing a black hoodie and black jeans, his hair was in the same style as her little brother's but a darker brown. His eyes were also brown and currently growing larger as they fixated on the blonde. "Whoa… you're completely not my mom." He grinned, his eyes roaming the blonde's figure. "But you're totally hotter and a much better sight. …Much more _open_ sight."

Serena gaped, looking down at herself to see the nurse had completely loosened the tie on the back of her gown and it was falling over her shoulders. Only a few more inches and her chest would have been exposed to everyone. She looked up, shrieking as she saw his eyes narrow in as if he'd noticed the exact same thing. "Get out! Get _out_!"

Her words knocked everyone out of their shock. Both the doctor and the nurse began moving toward the door, indignant scowls on their faces, but Darien was faster. He stalked the few feet over to the man, his eyes screaming murder and along they way she could have sworn they flashed gold again. Yet, right now, she was much more focused on the fact Darien was looming menacingly over the man by a few good inches. "Would you care to repeat that?"

The man was stuttering, his eyes wide in fear and not appreciation this time. He backed away, practically tripping over his untied laces. "I--I… _Dude_." He paused, gesturing wildly toward Serena. "Don't tell me you weren't thinking the exact same thing. You practically had a private show!"

"_WHAT?" _Serena screamed in indignation. She glared, swinging her legs over the side of her bed and preparing to do more than a little damage once she got a hold of the little pervert. But before she could set her feet on the ground, the nurse was there grabbing a hold of her shoulders.

"No, don't! You're too weak to go anywhere and your IV! You'll pull it out if you stand up." The woman insisted frantically.

Serena opened her mouth, preparing to yell at the boy with all her might since the lady had a good hold of her shoulders and she wasn't able to cause bodily harm now. Before she could begin her first syllable however, Darien was seizing a hold of the boy's hoodie collar. "Don't worry about it, Serena." He said as he looked over his shoulder. "I'll take care of him."

Serena's jaw dropped slightly, knowing that this time she really _did _see the golden flash that darted in his eyes. She frantically looked to the nurse and doctor but blissfully neither were paying attention to Darien. The nurse was still watching her warily and Doctor Vigil was glaring at the captive boy. Her eyes snapped back to Darien's to see him looking at her curiously, almost like he was asking permission. She replied despite the sea of questions of her own. "Just… just don't _hurt _him, all right?"

He smirked. "Had no intention of doing so." He turned back to his captive, the smirk growing. "Let's visit this mother of yours, shall we?" He ordered more than asked as began leading the man out of the door.

Serena giggled, knowing that the guy's mother's punishment was probably worse than Darien's could be. _'Then again… Darien was awfully mad. He really did have murder in his eyes.'_

"Well," Doctor Vigil chuckled, "that certainly was entertaining. I think we should finished up here, though, before it happens again."

* * *

Serena watched as Darien moved _his _chair (when the nurse had moved it to Hotaru's side of the room, that really was what she had described it as, much to both of their embarrassment). "What'd you do with that guy? You were gone for almost an hour."

He shrugged as he sat seated himself in his usual position beside the blonde's bed. "Nothing. I explained what had happened and both his parents grounded him for three months. They take disrespect toward females very seriously, apparently."

She narrowed her eyes as her fingers absently played with the end of her hair that the nurse had re-braided before she left. "You sure you didn't help his punishment along?"

He shrugged again but his eyes were dancing with amusement. "That was not my intent when I walked into that room."

She giggled, rolling her eyes and dropping her fingers. "I'll take that as _'it wasn't my intent but it happened anyway'_. Oh well. He deserves it if you ask me. I'm not prime rib for goodness sake!"

"And here I thought you would say you weren't chocolate." Darien replied wryly. "That strikes me as something you would love more than prime rib."

"Oh, you know what I mean." She huffed as she lightly leaned further back on her pillow; the new bandages around her stomach were really stiff and digging into her ribs more than ever now. "And don't talk about chocolate. I'm hungry."

He grinned. "Still bemoaning over the fact you aren't allowed to have solid food?"

She gave him a dry look. "What do you think, Darien?"

"I think…" He began slowly as he stretched his long legs out in front of him, "that I should go down to the cafeteria to see if they are serving anything chocolaty so I can eat it in here."

She narrowed her eyes. "Only if you can smuggle some back for me too."

"No can do, Odango." He said with a smirk. "You heard both the doctor _and _the nurse. You can't have solid food, including chocolate, until your healthier."

"I know." She grumbled reluctantly. "But… it's _chocolate_."

"Once you're released you can have all the chocolate you want. Enough to give you rotten teeth, even. Chocolate cake, sundaes, hot chocolate… " He grinned gesturing toward the stack of gifts on the table. "There's even a box of truffles somewhere in there for your enjoyment."

She glowered. "And you just had to tell me that, didn't you? It's only like, what? Ten feet away and I can't eat it for a _week_?" She scowled at his grin. "You really are enjoying this torture, aren't you?"

"Hmm…" He paused, pretending to think, before a devious smirk planted itself on his face. "I have to say I am."

"For that you're buying me another hot chocolate." She snapped in a huff.

"Fine." His eyes narrowed suspiciously as she seemed to grin in triumph. "As long as it's not at the café where that old lady works." He added, realizing her intent. "You're not going to put me through that again."

"_Please_, Darien." Serena pleaded, folding her hands under her chin carefully in light of the IV still in her right hand. "It was fun!"

He snorted in disbelief. "It was fun for you. Not for me. If you expect my money to buy you a hot chocolate, then it is my decision where we go. Take it or leave it."

The blonde narrowed her eyes as she considered his words. On one hand, she didn't have to agree because she could buy hot chocolate at the café herself. On the other hand buying some herself wouldn't give her the satisfaction of embarrassing Darien and she did (even though she wouldn't readily admit it to him) have fun with him that night and wouldn't mind doing it again. Her eyes light in triumph as she realized the perfect solution. "Fine, I accept your terms." She paused, watching for effect. "Guess where we're going when I get my allowance though?"

"You can't make me go anywhere, Serena." Darien said warily.

She smirked. "I can't, can I? I would like to remind you that you still owe me something for your pervertedness."

He frowned. "That wasn't part of the deal, remember?"

She wagged a finger at him. "Yes it is. Because now that my parents know you had taken care of me, I bet they'd _love _to know that you saw me _completely _naked."

He narrowed his eyes in reply to her victorious smile. "You wouldn't."

"Yes I would…!" She sang happily. "And you know that you can't do anything about it. You can't tell them how I really got my injuries because it would bring about lots of questions and not to mention the truth about both of our identities."

He pursued his lips, engaging a staring contest between them, before sighing in defeat. "You're evil but you have a deal. Just to let you know, I am only agreeing to avoid the wrath of your parents. We both know neither of us would say anything about the truth. Our identities would only put your family and everyone else at risk."

She nodded. "True but you already agreed so that doesn't matter anymore."

Darien sighed again before leaning back and closing his eyes tiredly. "Anything else you would like to blackmail me about?"

She tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Not right now, no. I do have a question for you though."

He popped an eye open before closing it with a groan. "You want me to find out when you're going to be able to eat?"

She rolled her eyes. "No, _jerk_. I have more things on my mind than food. And I already know when I'm going to eat, thank you. In three and a half hours at five o'clock."

He opened his eyes with a smirk. "More on your mind than food, huh?"

"Shut up." She growled, desperately wanting to whack the man over the head. _'If only he was a little closer…' _"I've been thinking about this since the doctor and nurse got here."

"Fire away." He murmured as he closed his eyes and fought back a yawn.

"Why weren't you surprised?"

Darien peeked his eyes open, his brow furrowed. Serena was gazing at him steadily, a slight frown wiping away all the previous amusement. "Why wasn't I surprised about what?"

"That I was Sailor Moon." She whispered quietly, eyes darting around the room afraid that someone could over hear her words.

"Don't look so nervous, Odango." Darien muttered as he straightened up in the chair. "There are no cameras on this floor, the two below, and the one above. The hospital needs more funding before it can upgrade its security. No one is going to overhear as long as we talk quietly."

Serena noticeably relaxed, realizing that Darien wouldn't have formed a rose, or say he was Tuxedo Mask, earlier had someone been able to see or hear. "Okay, that's a relief. Now answer the question."

Darien sighed, running a hand through his hair. "You know I really could ask you a similar question. Why weren't you surprised when I said I was Tuxedo Mask? Why did you look so horrified, Odango?"

"You shouldn't answer my question with one of your own." Serena reprimanded lightly. She suddenly sighed tiredly. "Just answer, Darien. Please. It's important to me."

The dark haired man frowned in thought. "I guess I wasn't surprised because I knew it in my own way. I just hadn't _realized _it, I suppose. I mean… the hairstyle, the blonde hair and blue eyes, the four friends who appeared timely in both lives. I should have recognized it ages ago, especially considering I am in close vicinity to both of your forms regularly, but for some reason I never did."

"It's the glimmer." Serena explained quietly. "Somehow it keeps people from recognizing how identical the Senshi are to me and my friends. I think it's like how you said: people know it but can't realize it. The dots can't be connected in their head. It makes sense to me, at least."

"I've heard you girls talking about a glimmer before." Darien commented, almost to himself. "I never really understood what is was. It's a Senshi magic, though, right?"

"Yeah." Serena sighed and adjusted herself on the bed. "…I wasn't horrified about you being Tuxedo Mask, you know."

"Oh?" He rose an inquisitive eyebrow. "You sure didn't look happy about it."

"No. I wasn't happy and I'm still not." Darien frowned at the sharp, odd pain in his heart as Serena shook her head lightly. "It…it's not fair."

"Fair? You weren't happy because it isn't _fair_?" He asked incredulously.

She turned her head and gave him a piercing look. "Yes. It's not fair. You were supposed to have a _normal _life. A normal life with a normal aspiration of being a doctor. You were the kind of person I was protecting but now I know you weren't and it's just--_ugh_." She shook her head and looked away to the window. "It's just not fair for you."

He leaned forward, his forearms dangling behind his legs. "And what makes it fair for you, Odango? I always thought that you were this world-loving, no care in the world teenager that didn't have to face the bad side of the world."

She chuckled weakly as she looked back at him. "Well, I guess now you know that I never was a carefree teenager. Not really. I've always been there. Ever since the first youma battle."

"I told you we were one in the same."

The blonde abruptly stiffened and her eyes became watery. "Can we please not talk about that right now? I… What you said helped but I really don't want to talk about the last battle right now. Or about Makoto."

"I understand." Darien nodded somberly. "Just promise me you aren't going to go down a self-destructive path right now."

She gave him a small, sad smile but nodded anyways. "I promise I won't. You made me realize that Makoto really did think she was doing what she thought best. I… I know I would have done the same thing in her position but it still doesn't seem reasonable to me. Makoto should be _here_ telling me that I have to hurrying up and get better so I can go watch her bake cookies and eat them afterwards."

"Come on. Don't start crying." Darien said, a hint of obvious pleading in his tone, as he leaned over to wipe away a few of the tears that had escaped from her blue eyes.

Serena giggled, batting his hand away to wipe the tears off herself. "I didn't know you were so panicky about tears, Darien."

He shook his head. "Never was good with emotions. Why do you think I tend to stay away from people." He suddenly gestured toward all the gifts, distracting Serena from commenting. "Now I have a question of my own. Why haven't you been fawning over this plethora of flora?"

She followed the pointing finger before looking back at him oddly. "A _plethora _of _flora_?"

He rolled his eyes. "Yes, Odango. It means an excess of flowers."

"I know what it means, you jerk!" She scowled angrily. "I was wondering where you come up with those sayings. People don't talk that way."

He shrugged uncaringly. "I know. _Darien Shields _talks that way."

"Yeah, yeah. Could you do me a favor and not refer to yourself in the third person?" She smiled sweetly. "And bring me a few of my presents while you're at it, too."

Darien rolled his eyes but still got up to do her bidding. Once there, he gazed at all the gifts before looking over at his shoulder. "Anything you want to see in particular before this once-in-a-lifetime ordering me around thing is over? I have work to do."

She grinned. "Don't go assuming this is a once-in-a-lifetime thing. I kind of like it. And could I see the…" She waved her hand, gesturing him to move out of the way. When he did so a few seconds later, she squinted. "Bring that _huge _pink card and that bouquet of flowers beside it, will you? Oh! And that vase of sunflowers with the little blue balloon! And those flowers-- what are they? Daffodils?"

Darien groaned. "Yes, Odango. They're daffodils and remember _two _hands here."

"Whatever. Just bring me all those things I listed." She leaned back all the way, watching as he picked up all the listed items carefully. "I'm waiting…"

"What? Do you _want _me to drop them or something?" He shot her a teasing grin and pretended to drop the vase of sunflowers, almost succeeding in truly dropping the monstrous card under his arm.

"No! _Jerk_!" Serena shouted as she leaned forward all the way, forgetting about her predicament. Instantly at being in a sitting position, she gasped and bit her lip at the pain in her back. "Ow…"

"_Odango_." Darien reprimanded, quickly lowering the gifts onto the armchair before leaning over her. Serena winced, not saying a word as he gently helped her lean back onto the bed. "Be careful. If you move too much the doctor might have to re-stitch you."

"I'm…okay." She wheezed as she squeezed her eyes shut. When the painful spasm passed, she opened them again carefully and grinned. "Even when I'm in the hospital I'm a klutz, huh?"

"For everyone's sake, please try _not _to be." Darien urged as he shook his head. "I really don't want you to end up staying here longer than a week."

Serena frowned at his back as he turned around. "You were really worried, weren't you?"

"Yes." She could clearly heard the concern in his voice but she decided not to say anymore as he turned back around with gift-laden arms. He eased them all into her lap with the exception of the vases of sunflowers and daffodils. Those he looked at carefully, frowning at their bent stems from being so hurriedly eased into the chair. "…Would you mind if I fixed a few of these?"

Serena looked up from the blue _'Get Well Soon!' _balloon that said it was from her family, her brow furrowed slightly as she realized what he was saying. "Sure. But…uh, how?"

He grinned, not answering as he walked around the bed and placed the vases on the nightstand. When he was sure she was about to yell about him to get on with it already, he plucked a few of the daffodils out of their vase and closed his eyes in concentration. Moments later, at Serena's gasp, he opened them again to see the daffodils had straightened out into perfect form.

"Wow…" Serena breathed, looking at him and the flowers with wide eyes. "They--you… _Wow_…"

He chuckled and placed the now-fixed flowers into their proper vase. "I've always wanted to stun someone into speechlessness with that and now I've achieved it with the loudest person I know. Thanks, Serena."

She giggled, watching as he fixed the bent sunflowers the same way. The flowers seemed to quiver in his hands for the briefest of seconds before straightening out; their petals become fuller, _brighter_ and their stems straighter and greener. _'That's so amazing…'_ "You've never shown that to anyone else before?"

Darien looked up, shaking his head as he walked back around the bed. "No. It's not exactly something that many people know how to do, I'm probably the only one for all I know. Talk about science experimentation…"

"Oh, I see your point." She couldn't stop grinning from amazement. "Thank you, then, for letting me see it."

He chuckled as he sat himself into his chair. "You're welcome. Besides, I told you, I've always wanted to stun someone into silence by doing that. Who better than you?"

She rolled her eyes but silently agreeing he did have a point: she was renown for her voice and screeches. Unwilling to tell him he was right though, she looked down at the gifts in her lap. Still with an amazed grin, she selected the enormous pink card to look at next. "Hmm. Let's see who this is from…"

Darien, seeing that his companion was preoccupied, turned his attention to his book bag to dig out his physics textbook and a folder that contained an assignment due when he returned to class this afternoon. He was already beginning to fall behind in his schedule by staying at the hospital for so long and knew he should use the available time while he could. _'It's not like I didn't want to be here though… What else would there be to do?'_ He pondered to himself as he opened the book.

Serena giggled a few minutes later, distracting Darien enough for him to look up. She was pouring over the large card still, something he remembered a few of her classmates -a Naru and a Umino, if he remembered correctly- bringing in about an hour and a half after school started this morning. _'Serena had just missed their visit too. Woke up not even an hour after they left to go back.'_

They had explained that their homeroom teacher had permitted the class to take the day off from studies to make it. They had then proceeded to go from classroom to classroom, gathering a number of greetings and well wishes, before getting special permission to bring it during their study hall period. _'Of course, I don't think their interrogation of me was included in that special permission.'_ Darien smirked slightly, remembering the duo's expressions when they had seen him studying in the room. _'And that boy… talk about nosy.' _In the end, the two had left with the belief that he was strange since he had refused to answer a good majority of their questions. Actually he'd only answered that he was eighteen, visiting his friend, and studying medicine but, the way he saw it, they were lucky they even got that.

Serena laughed, bringing Darien out of his thoughts to see she was closing the large card. "Ah. That Suki is so funny… Really, shrimps?" She giggled again, placing the card carefully on her right side opposite Darien. She made sure it was safely balanced, the sheer size of it helping it not to fall as its top rested against the bottom of the railing, before looking back at her lap. Her eyes light up when she spotted the bouquet. "Oh! Someone bought me roses… I love roses." She sighed as she brought them up to her nose to smell them. A few seconds later she was carefully rooting through them looking for the card.

Darien smirked at the blonde's quiet rumbling about misplaced cards as he returned to his work. A few moments later her huffing made him look up to see she was looking at him dryly. "What?" He asked innocently.

She rolled her eyes and gestured to the small cards in her hand. When he grinned widely, she narrowed her eyes. "_'Get well, Odango. Darien'. _Couldn't you have been a little more considerate?" She grit out unhappily.

He frowned but his eyes were still amused. "That's not very nice. I've practically been here all weekend, that shows my consideration. Besides, I was half asleep when I wrote that. You shouldn't have expected a heartfelt message."

"I would have liked the truth, at least." She grumbled as she returned the small card back to its proper place.

"That was the truth!" Darien protested, shaking his head in a mixture of amusement and disbelief. "I want you to get well. Your name's Odango. And guess what? My name's Darien!"

Her eyes narrowed again. "Don't be sarcastic with me, Mr. Shields."

"Fine." He cleared his throat loudly. "Dear Serena, I'm sorry to hear you were in the hospital. Please get well soon. I am greatly worried and miss our time together. Sincerely, Darien Shields." He rose a sarcastic eyebrow. "Better?"

She laughed, holding the flowers to her heart, and declaring dramatically, "Oh Darien! I didn't know you felt that way about me!"

"Don't get your hopes too high." He chuckled in amusement. "I only said what you wanted me to say."

"_Sure_, tell yourself that. But I know you _miss _me. You already admitted that you've been here all weekend and that you were worried about me." She easily countered. "Now, how come you didn't put these in water somewhere?"

He smirked as he used his pen as a bookmark and closed his textbook before leaning forward slightly. "Take a closer look, Serena. How old do you think those roses are?"

She did as he asked, peering at the flowers until she was practically nose to petal with them. "Uh…you bought them this morning?"

"For someone who watched me fix other people's flowers you sure are close-minded."

"Hey!" She said indignantly but before she could defend herself, Darien cut her off.

"I made those flowers Saturday morning before I left my apartment, Odango. They're three and a half days old and still look brand new. Despite no water or food."

Her eyes widened, looking at the roses comically before she suddenly slapped herself on the forehead with her un-IV-ed hand and laughed. "_Duh_! Tuxedo Mask's flowers. They are practically invincible."

"Not quite invincible but they don't need water, at least not yet." Darien replied in amusement.

Serena suddenly gasped, placing the bouquet onto her lap. She ignored Darien's reprimands to not lean forward too much as she carefully turned around and dug through her pillows. "Where is it… where is it… where--Ah ha!" She grinned but it faded as she pulled her object out of the pillows. "Oh, no…"

"What is it Serena?" Darien asked, growing uneasy at her sorrowful tone. He understood moments later when she turned around and he saw the flower in her hand. It was the rose he'd given her before he'd left to get Doctor Vigil and the nurse. Its petals were crushed, the stem snapped in half. "Oh…"

"I knew I should have asked the nurse to put it in water before they started examining me." She murmured to herself. When she looked up, Darien was surprised to see her eyes were shining with unshed tears. "I'm sorry Darien."

He smiled softly, wondering why the blonde had gotten so upset. "It's all right, Serena. It's just a flower."

"No it wasn't. It was a _gift_." She snapped before she sighed and looked down at the ruined flower. "I always keep the flowers you give me…They're all on my desk and now look? I've ruined one."

"You always keep the flowers I give you…" He repeated slowly before he sighed, gently prying the flower of her hand. She was hesitant but let him, watching hopefully as he closed his eyes. A few moments later he opened them again, frowning at seeing the same broken flower. "Sorry… Seems it's too far gone for me to fix it. But it's all right, you have other flowers."

She frowned, her eyes trained on the rose still. "You don't understand. They're not the same thing."

He shook his head, placing the flower on top of his textbook before moving both to the floor despite her protests. He smiled, looking up at her. "Look, Serena. It was just a flower. I can make more for you if you're so determined to have another. Besides, you have a dozen roses from me on your lap. Just _one _little one was destroyed."

"But…" She didn't get to say anything else before a new, bright red rose was placed under her nose.

"See? Another flower."

She gave him a watery smile. "I guess you're right… It's just _that _flower was the one you gave me after you helped me. You always seem to give me a flower when I need it."

He shook his head in wonder. "Do you really keep all those flowers I've given you at the battles?"

She smiled brightly, carefully placing the new rose with the bouquet. "Yep. I have all five of them now. One from the very first battle, one from when Jadeite and that little girl were killed, one from that night Rei slapped me, one from that fight a few weeks ago and now this one. Well, plus the dozen but I don't count them as the same thing. Those are get well gifts."

"And they're all alive?" He couldn't help but ask curiously. "I mean, the ones from months ago?"

"Yup." She said, giving him a bright smile as she placed the bouquet on the nightstand. "I keep them on my desk in a little vase of water. They're still bright red, looking completely perfect like I picked them off a bush minutes ago."

"Why bother keeping them?"

"Because they all hold a significance for me. The first one reminds me that being Sailor Moon, even if it changes everything, is my destiny. A destiny where I'm a protector and save people. The one from the night the little girl was killed, it reminds me that sometimes things go wrong, like that bus falling. I can't save every single person I've set my heart out to. I learned sometimes I have to left go even when I don't want to."

"And the others?" Darien asked quietly as Serena trailed off.

"The one from the night Rei slapped me reminds me that I'm never alone." She gave him an embarrassed smile. "Tuxedo Mask has always been by my side, saving me from everything. Even if everything included my own teammates. Then that fight a few weeks ago… I-- things were beginning to fall apart then, I think. Everyone was getting so _agitated _with every little thing I did. Be it defending you against them or-- or being late to battles all the time or whatever. That rose reminds me that even if what I believe in or do isn't something everyone else agrees with, as long as I agree with it, I should continue on. Then the rose you gave me during the talk about Makoto… it reminds me life goes on. Unfortunate accidents happen like Jupiter's death or what Rei did to me but life still goes on and I should make the most of it."

After she stopped, Darien stayed silent for a few minutes longer. Eventually unable to handle the silence, the blonde laughed nervously and rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment. "Well… you asked."

"Do they really mean all that to you?"

Serena titled her head curiously, looking at Darien's bowed head. "Yeah. I wouldn't have said all that if they didn't. … Darien? What's wrong?'

He shook his head and looked up, his expression closed off from her once again. "Nothing. I'm just glad you're alright. I wasn't always sure I was still helping you at the battles. Even if I still saved you physically, there was always this… _distance_, I guess you could say,in your eyes. I was worried that one day you would just give up."

She looked down and fiddled with the edge of the sheet that had pooled into her lap. "I know. Some days I felt like I could --or _should_-- give up but I never could do it."

"I know." Darien uttered quietly, seeing how nervous Serena was with revealing all this personal information. "I felt it too. Both from you and from myself. That defeat, that weariness. That desire to just let the Dark Kingdom do away with us."

"Why didn't you?"

He was silent for a long time, making Serena look up hesitantly. He was staring at the window with an intense expression, a stiffness in his shoulders that wasn't there a minute ago. "Not particular reason. I would just think of things. Like what Motoki would do if I never showed up for coffee or class one day if I died. Or how there has to be a reason I'm Tuxedo Mask and if I gave up and walked away, I'd never learn it. Or I would think of you, even. Either civilian you or Sailor Moon."

She held in a gasp as he looked back at her. _'His eyes are so stormy…He really thought about giving up a lot.' _"I… I know I'd pretty helpless without you as Sailor Moon if you just quit one day." She said uneasily. "But how would my civilian self be affected?"

The turbulence disappeared out of his eyes as he grinned. "Why, who else would be able to keep you on your toes if I died? You'd be miserable without our arguments."

She smiled slightly in reply, even as something in her heart hurt at the thought of the man before her dying. "It's true. I won't deny it _but _you know you feel the same way."

"I do."

Serena opened her mouth before she realized there wasn't anything else to say. At least, not just yet. They had both opened up to each other and were _comfortable_ right now, more than they had ever been with one another. _'And I kind of like it…'_ She thought as she closed her eyes.

* * *

Serena grinned, thanking the tall, brown-haired nurse as he walked away with remains of her dinner. It might have just been plain chicken broth but after not having food since lunch Friday, in her eyes it had been a feast fit for a queen.

"Happy now that you got food?"

Serena sighed, adjusting her head on her pillows. "As a matter of fact, I am." She watched Darien curiously when he didn't even bother looking up from his textbook. She had suspected he'd been in that position since she had first fallen asleep almost two hours ago; rapidly writing up what looked like an essay in the last half hour as she ate. "…When are you going to eat dinner? Or go home? It's almost six and I know you didn't eat lunch and you have barely left this room, too."

He finally looked up, his brow wrinkling. "Are you really that eager to get rid of me?"

She rolled her eyes, her hands picking at her blankets. "No, just curious. You really should eat something." _'Because you're beginning to look like you haven't slept in days and haven't ate in just as many.' _she finished in her thoughts. Out loud she said nothing though, knowing he would only get defensive. They had, surprisingly, had a good day together and she didn't want to ruin it. _'I'm actually surprised we talked so much.'_ she mused to herself with a smile. _'And I learned a lot about him today, too.'_

She didn't know _why _she was suddenly picking up on the things Darien did; maybe it was because they had shared their secret identities with one another, or maybe it was because this had been the most they had ever spoken and spent time in each others company, or it could even be some weird result of Makoto's death, she just didn't know. All she knew was that she'd been noticing things he'd been doing all day. Like how he would gaze out of the window with this wistful look in his eyes when he thought she wasn't looking or how earlier, when a nurse adjusted the IV in her hand, he'd flinched and (reluctantly since she had to practically pry it out of him) admitted he didn't like needles. Then there were also things she'd noticed about him before that seemed more obvious that ever now. Like how when he didn't want to answer a question, he would distract you or play it off as nothing.

"Don't worry about me, Odango. I'll eat later."

'_Exactly like that.' _Serena grumbled. "I can worry about you if I want." She insisted, glaring at the top of his head. _'That dummy is going to be the one in the hospital if he doesn't take care of himself.'_

"Later."

She snorted loudly, projecting her disbelief. _'Jeez, the more time I spend with Darien the more I notice how much he and Tuxedo Mask are alike. I should have noticed the similarities _months _ago! Neither one likes bringing light to things they think aren't important. Then both identities are secretive, quiet, and mysterious; Tuxedo Mask never stayed close to anyone and never said more than a handful of words to the other Senshi and Darien is the same way. Except instead of Senshi it's people in general.'_

Of course, at the realization that her verbal sparring partner was her savior, she'd been realizing things she always thought only applied to Tuxedo Mask _also _applied to Darien. Tuxedo Mask, for example, would always encourage and protect her. On a normal day she would say that Darien just teased her but, thinking back to her encounters with the man, she'd realized he would constantly remind her to study (it _did _just come in the form of teasing) and question if she had any upcoming tests, thus reminding her of them despite the fact studying was usually interrupted by Senshi business. Then he also (more often than not) prevented her from falling when they collided into each other. It wasn't the same kind of protecting that Tuxedo Mask, that was for sure, but he was saving her from making a bigger fool out of herself than people already thought she was. _'Then there is today too. Darien took that perverted guy to his parents and he made me realize that I'm not to blame for Makoto's death.'_

"Quit staring."

She glowered, her face burning into a blush as she realized she was, and did as he said. _'I still can't figure out how he does that though.'_ She sighed, looking around the room for something to entertain herself with. She'd already looked through all her gifts, she'd taken a nap (during which she had missed her mother's visit, unfortunately), she's ate, and now she wanted something to do so she wasn't be bored out of her mind. _'I wish Darien wasn't so engrossed n his work. Actually, I really wish I could go outside…'_

"You can't go outside." Darien said, looking up to see the girl's wistful look at the rapidly darkening world through the window. "It's too cold. Winter will be here soon so it is getting colder faster at the end of the day. You'd only get sick in your condition if you went out now."

"No I wouldn't."

"Yes you would. Doctor Vigil said your immune system was weak. In addition, you have to avoid straining yourself so your injury can finish healing properly. Going outside now would put you at risk." He promptly shut his book and leaned down to return it to his bag, missing the tongue Serena stuck out at him.

"Fine." She groaned in defeat but she still continued to look out the window in longing for another minute. "You really sound like a doctor, Darien. Giving orders like that. Or maybe a concerned parent…" She said thoughtfully as she leaned her head back on her pillows fully.

"Let's stick with the doctor route, Serena."

"…I wasn't bothering you too much was I?" She questioned after a bit, her eyes fixed on his book bag.

"Huh?" He lifted his arm to follow her line of sight on the ground before shaking his head. "No, I finally caught up on all my work."

"That's good. Now you can go home and sleep. Eat too."

"You really want to get rid of me, don't you?" He asked as he leaned against the back the chair and closed his eyes.

"You've been here _all _day, Darien. Don't you want to go home or something? I know I'm not that entertaining."

He peeked an eye open, a smirk on his face. "Do you really want to go there, Odango? I have a whole list of things about you that I find entertaining."

She groaned, lightly hitting the back of her head against her pillows a few times. "Even when I'm in the hospital, you can't stop teasing me." He simply grinned and closed his eyes. "_Jerk_. …What time did my mom say she was going to come tomorrow?"

"Around noon. I think she believed that if she comes around lunch you're guaranteed to be awake." She could practically hear the smirk in his voice but she refused to look at him to see it. "She also said that she'd bring your brother by after school. She would have brought him today but he was supposed to be in some video game competition he couldn't get out of."

Serena snorted. "A likely story. I bet that since he knows I'm okay, he wants to go have fun with his friends. No need to worry about his older sister anymore." She sighed, her eyes falling on the roses still left on the nightstand. When Darien had returned all her gifts to the table, they'd had a silent agreement to leave his flowers there. In the end, she'd asked one of the nurses to find something to place them in, deciding that even if they _were _Tuxedo Mask's special roses, they still needed water. _'They do seem kind of happier…'_

"Shouldn't you be tired or something, Odango? I expected your nap to last much longer than it had."

"No, not really. I've been sleeping for days." She said simply as her eyes wandered back over to Darien to see him watching her. "I'm more restless than anything. If I could, I would jump around or something."

"Sleeping helps your recovery, though, and you'll need plenty for the testing you're going to go through."

Serena's eyes narrowed at she noticed the tone that had entered the man's words at the end of his sentence. _'Why is he so mad about the testing? It's normal if there's something weird in my blood, right?'_ She opened her mouth, wanting an answer for his weird behavior about her "miracle recovery" and testing once and for all but the door opened.

The blonde couldn't help but look over curiously, wondering if it was actually a visitor this time around. Throughout the whole day Naru had been her only real visitor (besides Darien) and she'd arrived half-way through dinner. She's only stayed long enough to finally deliver a week's worth of homework, much to Serena's displeasure, before leaving to help her mother with the super week-long sale their jewelry store was having. So Serena had had no parental visits when she was awake, no Shingo visits, no classmate visits, and no Motoki visits (though Darien had told her that the man had been regularly visiting all weekend). Not even Ami had visited, though Serena couldn't blame her friend because of the recent death of Makoto.

To the blonde's disappointment, it was a nurse; one dressed in plain brown scrubs that she had never seen before. The blonde woman ambled in, holding the door open for someone behind her. Hotaru walked in, or rather _marched _in, seconds later with a scowl on her face. The child completely bypassed the nurse's outstretched arms, walking to the right side of her bed to pull the heavy chair there closer. She struggled for a minute, the nurse not even bothering to help, before managing to pull the object next to her bed. Without delay, Hotaru proceeded to pull herself on top of the chair before using the railing one-handedly (her cast wasn't helping her left arm any) to get onto her bed. Then, once she was seated, she pulled the thin sheets over her body before lying down and closing her eyes. _'So that's how she did it earlier.' _Serena thought in amazement. _'She sure is a resourceful little girl.'_

Serena glanced over at Darien, wondering if he was just as surprised as she was, but he was only glaring at the blonde headed nurse. The teenager's brow furrowed, looking back at the woman to see she was rolling her eyes as she dragged the blanket that was bunched up at the foot of the bed across Hotaru. The girl, in turn, didn't bother to open her eyes but even Serena could see how she had automatically stiffened.

"Be good, girl." The nurse said faintly, glancing over at both Serena and Darien. The latter she looked at for a few moments longer before narrowing her eyes and walking out of the room. Serena frowned as she watched the door close behind the darker blonde. _'Well, that was rude.'_ She shook her head, looking back at Hotaru only to be startled as she found violet eyes locked onto her. Serena smiled friendly, giving a small wave. "Hello. My name's Serena."

The child didn't say anything in reply, which Serena expected from what Nurse Saji had told her, but Darien still gave her a piercing look from the corner of his eye. She rolled her own eyes in return. "I wasn't going to force her to talk, Darien. I was just introducing myself for goodness sakes."

He nodded, realizing someone had told her about the girl's situation. "Good." He paused before he was turning around in his chair so its back faced the wall, leaving him in perfect view of either female without straining his neck. He smiled at Hotaru after he was situated. "You were gone all day, Hotaru. Did you visit a lot of doctors and your mother again?"

Serena watched as the girl finally slid her eyes away from herself to look at Darien. After a long moment, Hotaru hesitantly nodded, her black hair brushing against her pillow at the movement.

Darien nodded in reply, leaning back in the chair. "Good. The doctors will help heal your arm in no time."

Serena watched the interaction with a smile. _'So I was right. Darien does have a soft spot for kids. I knew he had to when he would give money to ones who run out of their own to play video games with. Or when he bought that little girl a lemonade over the summer without her saying anything to him…'_ "Hotaru, has anyone signed your cast yet?" She asked quietly, her eyes fixed on the purple object. She looked up as the girl's eyes slid back over to her. Seconds later Hotaru was giving Serena a confused frown and slowly shaking her head. "No? Not even Darien?"

Again Hotaru shook her head no, making Serena look toward her companion accusingly. "Why haven't you signed this sweet little girl's cast, Darien? Didn't you ever want anyone to sign any of your casts?"

Darien seemed to think about it for a second before shaking his head. "No. I only broke my wrist before and no one offered."

"That's so sad…" Serena muttered with a frown. "I would have offered to."

"Thanks, Serena, but that was years ago. Before I knew you." He explained easily with a shrug.

She pursed her lips as she spotted something old flash though his eyes. _'There he goes playing things off as nothing.' _"_Still_. If you ever break anything again, I will be the first in line to sign your cast."

He chuckled and gave her a secretive smile. "I don't think that breaking anything will be a problem in my future."

"What do you--?" She stopped, remembering the third person in the room, and instinctively knowing this wasn't a question he could answer right now. She shook her head and stuffed the comment away with everything else that needed further questioning. She turned back to the little girl with a bright smile. "Would you like me to sign your cast?" Again she received a confused frown so she decided to elaborate. "People sign your casts with funny little drawings or well wishes. It's a way of making you feel better about not being in the best condition."

When the girl didn't nod, or shake her head, Serena felt the smile slip off her face slightly. "Oh. Okay. If you want me to, just give me a pen though, okay? I'd be more than happy to."

Finally the girl gave a little, hesitant nod and looked toward Darien. The dark-haired man studied Hotaru for a long moment before smiling. "Would you like a pen?"

The girl's eyes darted continually from him and Serena, a considering frown on her face, before finally looking at Darien and nodding. Serena grinned, looking at the little girl gratefully. "Thank you, Hotaru."

The child nodded again, sitting up on her bed. After shuffling through his bag for a bit, Darien's hand emerged with a black permanent marker. He glanced between the two females, realizing a problem, before turning to the child. "Hotaru, would you mind if I brought you over here? Serena isn't allowed to leave her bed."

"Darien!" Serena growled, afraid that she'd loose her chance to make friends with the girl if _she _had to come to _her _bed. "I can get up!" To prove her point she determinedly placed both of her hands beside her and pushed herself up. Instantly she felt a fire leap through her back, a slight pulling around her shoulders, and the bandaging pressing down on her ribcage but she grit her teeth against all of it. She was going to walk, somehow, over to Hotaru herself and sign her cast. At least, that was her plan until incessant hands began to push her back onto her pillows. She opened her eyes, surprised that she had squeezed them shut and that they were blurry with tears, to see Darien's large form. "No. _Please_, Darien."

He sighed, the sound remorseful, but nonetheless continued to ease her down. "I'm sorry, Serena, but you _can't _do this. You're only going to hurt yourself more. And don't lie, I can see the pain in your eyes."

The blonde sucked in a sharp breath through her teeth as her back hit the bed. What had previously felt soft was feeling more like sandpaper now, rubbing her back raw with each breath. Distantly she heard Darien say something but even when she closed her eyes and concentrated her hardest, the words didn't make sense. "W-what?"

Darien winced as he started down at the girl. Her skin had already become flushed and sweaty, her breaths coming in shallower. The wounds are her back were causing her more pain than ever and he just didn't understand it. She'd been healing well until she'd fainted, he'd seen the injury with his own eyes after all, but when the doctors had been forced to reopen it, it seemed to hurt even more this time around. He glanced over the shoulder to see Hotaru watching them both, so he slowly moved himself closer to hide Serena's condition. "Listen to me." He whispered into the blonde's ear as he leaned down. "I need you to help me, all right? I'll help ease the pain but you have to lean forward again. It'll hurt but I promise you'll feel better in a minute or two."

Serena blinked in confusion as he looked up at Darien, his words finally absorbing. He looked as desperate as she felt so she grit her teeth again and did as he asked. She'd do anything to get rid of the haze of pain in her mind; never mind she was curious to know how _Darien _could be the one to get rid of it. Yet mere seconds later she was stiffening, her eyes grow impossibly wide as Darien's hand slipped into the slit in the back of her gown. "W-what are you _doing_?" she hissed, her face burning a fire engine red, as she wondered just want she had agreed to. "Pervert! Do the words backless gown and no bra mean _anything _to you!?"

He chuckled, the feeling rumbling through Serena's body where his chest was pressed against her shoulders. "Don't worry, Odango. Nothing perverted I swear." Yet even as he said this, his hand shifted lower and Serena was stiffening further at the reminder she was only wearing underwear. "_Relax_…" Darien murmured, his voice oddly calming and Serena abruptly found herself doing as he said, practically slumping against him.

He _wasn't _going to do anything perverted, she knew, because he basically had her at his mercy -at his apartment in his _bedroom_- but he hadn't done anything. She highly doubted he would start now when a little girl was in the room; besides, it was really tiring tensing and relaxing every other movement of his hand. Serena sighed as Darien's questing fingers lingered on the bandages around her waist. He brushed the bindings a few times before his fingers stilled, a warmth appearing there. A few light touches here and there and the warmth began to spread throughout her whole back.

When Darien's sparks stopped after what only felt like seconds, Serena made a whimper-like noise in the back of her throat that had him chuckling again. He leaned away, hoping she wouldn't focus in on the blush he felt across his cheeks, and looked at her curiously. "Is the pain in your back gone?"

Serena opened her eyes slowly, doing an inventory on her body. Darien was right; all the pain was gone. "Yes." She frowned as his fingers slipped out of her gown and pulled it closed. "Wait…"

He immediately stilled, his hand lingering on her shoulder before looking down at the girl warily. "What? Did I hurt you somewhere else by doing that?"

She shook her head, a relaxed haze surrounding her mind that let her thoughts escape without thinking them over. "No. Why'd you stop though? I was _comfortable_." When Darien laughed loudly, it occurred to her just want she'd said and how _whiny _it had sounded. She flushed a deeper red, immediately leaning away from him to bury her face into her hands in sheer mortification. "Tell me I did not say that…" _'This tops this morning as the most embarrassing time of my life, I'm positive.'_

Darien laughed again, he just couldn't help it. "Sorry, Odango." he whispered with a teasing grin. "If I healed you too much, the doctors would only get suspicious. Besides, it's not like I can control it completely but… it should stop the pain for a while and you can probably move around better now."

Serena peeked through her fingers, dropping them when she saw the considering look in his eyes. "Heal?"

In answer he moved his fingers in front of him before wiggling them slightly. The blonde's eyes widened as she saw gold sparkles flicker on his fingers for the briefest of seconds before they disappeared. She looked up in astonishment to see him grinning. "Remember the _'sparkly-thingies'_ you saw?" He whispered. "They're my healing powers, at least the gold ones you saw. I think the silver ones were a power of yours."

'_Gold. The same color his eyes flashed.' _She gawked at the man as he walked over to Hotaru. "Could you come over to Serena?" He asked quietly. "She can't walk over here because it will hurt."

The little girl chewed on her lip and peered around the man's big body to see Serena lying down and smiling at her now. She guessed he was telling the truth; when the lady had sat up before she looked like she was going to cry. Now she looked funny though, like she was tired and awake at the same time and her face was red. _'What did Darien say when he was hugging the lady?'_ She wondered curiously.

"It's all right, Hotaru. You don't have to come over here if you don't want to." Serena smiled, even if it was touched with a hint of sadness. "Remember. All you have to do is give me a pen when you're ready for me to sign your cast. If you want me to that is."

Hotaru looked up at Darien to see he was still looking at her. She furrowed her brow before nodding after a minute, opening her arms to be picked up. Darien, hiding his surprise that Hotaru was willingly asking to be held, hefted her up carefully and placed her on his hip. When he made it the few feet to Serena, she was grinning wildly and Hotaru was staring at her curiously.

"Would you be able to sit on Serena's bed, Hotaru? She won't be able to write comfortably over the railing." He gently tapped on the said barrier as he said this, bringing the females' staring contest to a halt. The black-haired girl nodded after Serena easily said she didn't mind if Hotaru sat down with her.

The black-haired man silently marveled at how Serena had just made a friend with a girl as anti-social as him as he gently eased the child onto the bed. He took a second to fish the marker from his pocket before handing it to Hotaru, signifying it was up to her to make the next move. She looked down at it pensively, shifting nervously in her position next to Serena's knees, before biting her lip and thrusting the pen into the older female's lap.

Serena grinned happily as she picked up the object and tapped her chin with it, moving over silently to give the child more room. "Hmm. What should I write?" She murmured out loud, giddily watching Hotaru carefully sit cross-legged in the space she'd just opened.

Darien shook his head as he sat down in his chair. _'Amazing, Hotaru's being so uncharacteristic. During these past few days I've watched her and know she never lets anyone touch her, not even to hold her hand in the hallways. And I'm positive the only reason she lets people stay in the room with her is because she refuses to talk and can't tell them to go away. Which is probably the same reason she lets Mrs. Tsukino read or try to play with her, or even let me read the few times when a nurse or Mrs. Tsukino suggests I should. Hotaru always wants to stay a safe distance from everyone but in one conversation with Serena, she's sat on someone else's bed, let non-doctors touch her arm, let _me _pick her up.'_

"Okay!" Serena giggled, breaking the brooding man from his thoughts. "Now time for the drawing…" He chuckled slightly, crossing his arms and leaning back to observe the two. Hotaru was watching curiously, a gleam that hadn't been present earlier in her eyes, as Serena covered part of the cast with her hand and set to work.

Darien's eyes softened as he watched the duo. _'Hotaru really needs someone like Serena right now. Someone so determined to be friends with her that they'd willingly injure themselves just to sign her cast. Mrs. Tsukino can't sit and play or read all the time when she has a family to look after and I know I'm certainly not the friendliest person in the world. Serena, though… she can spend time with Hotaru, play and read to her, and maybe even stop her from completely withdrawing from everything and everything.'_

The dark-haired man blinked as the marker suddenly thrust in his field of vision. He rose a dubious eyebrow as he looked down at Hotaru who was staring at him intently. "You want _me _to sign your cast?" The dark-haired girl smiled, just the slightest curving of her lips, but it was still a smile. Darien smiled in return, unable to resist something as miraculous as that, and took the marker hesitantly. "Uh… I don't know what to write." He admitted sheepishly as he stared at the cast presented to him. "I've never signed anyone's cast before…"

"Are you serious?"

He looked up in embarrassment to see Serena gazing at him with an indescribable look that made her eyes a darker blue. "When I said that no one offered to sign my cast, Odango, it went both ways." He explained quietly. "No one asked me to sign their casts and I never offered."

She smiled brightly but her eyes were still dark despite her cheery words and expression. "Then read mine, dummy! It will give you an idea."

He watched Serena, wondering what was running through her mind, before looking down. _"'Hey Hotaru, it has been nice to meet you. I'm positive that we'll have a lot of fun and become friends while we're stuck together in the hospital. When we're allowed to leave, I promise that I will take you to my favorite park and I will buy you anything you want in celebration of our freedom. Here's to wishing you will get well soon. Love, Serena Tsukino.'_" Darien peered at the cast closer before looking up at Serena. "Is that a bunny? Because it kind of looks like a cat…"

She rolled her eyes, sniffing indignantly. "My drawings aren't on display for your judgment. They are there to cheer _Hotaru _up. Besides, do you not see how the _bunny _is hopping over the moon? It's a perfectly good drawing!"

His lips twitched. "Of course. Of course." He looked down at Hotaru who was watching attentively. "Do you think I can make a better rabbit than Serena?"

"The point is not the drawing!" Serena growled, reaching over and thumping the man on the shoulder. She grinned when she made contact and he uttered a startled "ow". "I missed doing that…"

Darien took a second to glare at her before giving into the temptation of rubbing his shoulder surly. "Are you sure you're sick? You don't hit like you are."

Serena grinned, the darkness lifting out of her eyes as she shrugged. "What you did made me feel better, like you said it would. I really, _really _wish I could go outside right now."

He rolled his eyes, not commenting on his healing abilities and the sudden urge to yawn. _'Figures they'd energize Serena when they made me more than a little tired. Of course, it is my energy the power is coming from…'_ He shook his head, deciding just be glad his healing powers had actually worked when he wanted them to. He tightened his grip on the marker and studied the cast. "All right. How am I going to make a better message and bunny than Serena?"

"_Darien!"_

His laughed, a full fledged grin on his face as he saw Hotaru's lips twitch in amusement. He gave the girl a teasing wink before beginning on his own masterpiece. _'The first time signing a cast. Here goes nothing.'_

* * *

_Finished: Oct 3rd 2008, 1 AM. _

_Posted: October 4th. 9:40-ish PM_

_I just want to say that I really appreciate everyone who has stuck around this story. I know that I can't push out chapters every single week like some authors can but I truly am writing and making sure the chapter is the best that it can be given the time its created. _

_And I would also like to mention that I will be taking down the poll on my profile when I post chapter 25 so please take the time to vote on the future of this possible series before I do so. Thank you for those that already have voted. _

_Hope you enjoyed this latest installment. Like always, reviews and comments are more than welcome._

_Tiger Celeste_


	22. Chapter 22

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

Ah, this chapter is a pain in my side. I just couldn't be happy with it, though I feel _slightly _better about it. But it was so long I had to kick out a scene. T.T Though it will be in the next one. (Woot! The general scene finally comes then too. YES!!! I love it.) And you finally learn what Darien did to Motoki as well.

Hehe, I'm so happy that you all enjoyed the Sere/Dare interactions. They really needed them, didn't they? And I'm glad that a few of you pointed out how Serena's so nice so can befriend even Hotaru, that truly was my point there.

**Tenshi-Chikyuu**: Ooh, thanks so much for pointing that out! I fixed it as soon as I read your review. And here I thought I was one of the only people left you'd never signed a cast before. I really had to stop and think about what Serena would right. Lol.

**Valkyrie Celes**: Unfortunately Serena is not out of the hospital in this chapter, though I Ami is a big part of the conversation this time. A scene with Rei was supposed to be added but I had to remove it out as I mentioned above… As for Serena's wound, it truly was just that bad. She'd been healing at Darien's apartment but as soon as she got home, her healer was no more. Then take into account she wasn't taking it easy or truly taking care of her wounds, so it had stopped healing. By the time she fainted, it had a slight infection and the docs were forced to open it just so it could heal properly. It is better now though, thanks to Darien once again. Hope that helps; and thanks for R/R!

Enjoy this chapter everyone! Sorry for the long wait!

* * *

"Here we are!" Dr. Vigil proclaimed happily as he stopped in front of 224. He turned to the two women behind him with a smile on his face. "So, are you ready to begin your first session of testing, Serena?"

'_Like I have a choice.'_ The blonde thought with a small yawn. _'Just like I didn't have a choice of waking up after eight o'clock.'_ Despite her grumblings she smiled at the doctor still, knowing that he was trying to be helpful. He had, after all, called her mom when she'd wished out loud that the woman could be there at the testing and he'd also waited an extra hour to bring her down here so she could eat and be fully awake first. "Sure, Doctor Vigil. I'm as ready as I'll ever be, I guess."

"That's the spirit." He proclaimed with a nod before opening the door and stepping back to allow the two females to enter. Ikuko thanked the man quietly as she tightened her grip on Serena's wheelchair and pushed her daughter in. _'Ah, yet another room with machines I'll never understand.'_ She thought as she stopped next to the examination table and peered around. _'There sure are a lot of posters in this one, though.'_

"…_Serena?_"Both the teenager and her mother immediately looked over at the other white lab-coated doctor that stood beside a sink, her face showing complete astonishment as she blinked a few times.

"Doctor Mizuno?" Serena questioned with a grin. "I had no idea you worked at this hospital."

The black-haired doctor shook her head as she dried her hands with a paper towel. "I don't actually. I was called in for a special case. I hadn't realized it was about you, though." She tossed the paper towel into the bin, idly observing Serena. She'd read the case file and knew her new patient had recently been in a youma attack but would never have thought it was the smiling girl before her. _'Nothing could possibly be in her bloodstream, right? She looks a little tired and pale but nothing like the file described her as.'_

Doctor Vigil grinned as he sat Serena's chart on the counter and began pulling up his sleeves. "Ah, Saeko, Serena _is _special! A miracle too!" The female doctor rolled her eyes, well aware of the man's habit of declaring everyone a miracle so long as they were _his _patient. "Just an hour ago," Vigil continued boastfully, "I removed the IV that was originally planned to stay with her until Thursday night."

Saeko's eyebrows rose curiously as her eyes slid down to where Serena's hands were resting on her lap. She could see fresh bruises on one of them, proving the doctor's story. "Why so early?"

"It was supposed to help replenish her electrolyte count," Vigil explained merrily as he turned on the facet and began watching his hands, "but when I examined it this morning, it was _completely _replenished! Her dehydration seemingly corrected herself within a night when it had been showing no signs of improving in the past three days. I do believe _that _is what you call miraculous."

Serena's smile was innocent and she only offered a shrug as both physicians looked at her. She knew how and, most importantly, _who _corrected her dehydration but she certainly wasn't going to share that information with anyone else. Except with the man himself to let him know he hadn't just healed her back a little. _'I'm just glad Darien didn't heal my back __**too **__much. Otherwise I have a feeling Doctor Vigil would know something else was going on. An almost completely healed back and corrected dehydration in one night would be a little too miraculous.'_

"That is interesting." Dr. Mizuno murmured before her eyes darted up to the silent woman still gripping Serena's wheelchair. "Ikuko, it is good to see you again."

The purple-haired woman blinked a few times and looked away from the poster that had captured her attention. "Yes, it is good to see you as well, Saeko. It's been a while."

Saeko smiled sheepishly. "It has been. Almost three months, ever since that summer party, if I'm not mistaken."

Ikuko's eyes flickered in thought before she nodded slowly. "It has been that long, hasn't it?"

"And I have to apologize for that." Saeko replied softly. "I get far too caught up in work. Even poor Ami hardly ever sees me."

Dr. Vigil's hazel eyes swung between the two group on opposite sides of the room, a bemused frown on his face. "So…you three know each other?"

The two older woman nodded and Serena grinned. "Yes. Doctor Mizuno is the mother of one of my best friends." She replied before the grin slipped slightly. _'One of my very limited best friends.'_

The male nodded wisely, as if he hadn't just been so confused. "Right, right." Suddenly a grimace filtered through his face. "Pretend you don't though, all right?" He turned to his fellow colleague. "You-know-who is going to be the one running the tests and you know how he is about professional-patient relations."

Saeko winced as well. "Doctor Rupert?"

"The very same." He turned back to the Tsukino's with a bright smile on his face. "Pretend you don't know Doctor Mizuno outside of the hospital, please. She is a fine doctor and I don't want to see her dismissed from your case or written up for disorderly conduct just because of one man's pickiness."

Ikuko blanched at the thought of the woman getting in trouble. "Would this doctor truly do such a thing?"

Saeko nodded slowly. "Unfortunately. Doctor Rupert is a brilliant doctor, perhaps the best in his field, but he believes in complete professionalism and is a stickler for rules. As long as you make sure to address me as Doctor Mizuno at all times and make no mention of Ami or my personal life, all should be well." She looked down at Serena with a considering frown. "Unless, of course, you do not want me here. I understand if you believe I know you too personally to be a proper doctor. The same with you, Ikuko."

The Tsukinos looked at one another before simultaneously turning back to the black-haired doctor and shaking their heads. "No, please stay. I actually like you here, Doctor Mizuno. I…" Serena paused to laugh and rub the back of her head in embarrassment. "I'm kind of nervous. It's why I wanted Mom here. You being familiar helps me calm down a lot, actually."

Dr. Mizuno smiled thankfully as she nodded. "All right then. And don't worry about being nervous, Serena, it's perfectly natural."

"Let's get started, shall we?" Dr. Vigil interrupted abruptly as he glanced down at his watch. "We're already behind schedule and I'd prefer that Rupert doesn't show up while we're standing around talking."

"Of course, of course." The other doctor replied, an instant professional smile on her face. "Doctor Vigil, please help our patient onto the table and begin preparing the instruments." She turned toward Ikuko, pointing toward a chair beside the door. "Mrs. Tsukino, if you would please sit over there while we prep your daughter that would be much appreciated."

The housewife sent Saeko an amused smile at her sudden turn of professionalism but did as requested. "Of course. I will be allowed to stand next to Serena if she needs me though, right?" She added anxiously as she saw the girl's face pale as she looked over the side of the bed where a tray with who-knows-what sat.

"Yes." Dr. Mizuno said with a reassuring small smile. "Now, I will explain the testing procedure. Every day it will be different but today's is completely routine. We will withdraw three small vials of blood from Miss Tsukino and will then…"

* * *

Serena smiled tiredly as her hospital door opened and a distinct head of blue hair appeared, its owner stepping all the way in seconds later. "Ami…"

The girl started slightly, snapping her head over to Serena's bed with a timid smile. She was in her school uniform, her brown book bag resting off one shoulder and practically dragging against the ground with its weight. "Hello, Serena." Ami said softly, silently moving to the armchair beside her friend's bed. "You are looking much better than I had anticipated."

Serena frowned in confusion as the bluenette eased her book bag onto the floor. "What do you mean?"

Despite the smile on her face, Ami's eyes were still sad. "Umino. He has taken it upon himself to tell everyone how you are deathly pale, looking as if you will collapse any minute. Many people believe him because they've all said when they came to visit you were still unconscious. In any case, he has been going on and on about how you are on the verge of dying."

Serena rolled her eyes and snorted. "He's being overdramatic. I was unconscious for days, sure, but I'm not _dying_. I feel fine actually, just tired after the day I've had." She giggled suddenly and looked past Ami's shoulder. "He might even be saying that because he is still upset he couldn't get a peek at my medical chart. Darien told me Umino kept asking all kinds of things yesterday then he started bothering a nurse for the chart. I have a feeling he was _escorted _out in the end."

Ami smiled slightly as she looked behind herself. Darien was sitting on another armchair beside the other bed in the room; a textbook was propped open and facing his chest but abandoned. He was sleeping soundly, as was the child that occupied the bed. Her eyes narrowed as she spotted the dark smudges under his eyes. "How long has Darien been here?"

Serena gave a faint smile. "Practically since Saturday; I was admitted Friday night."

The bluenette whirled back around, her eyebrows raised high on her forehead. "Really? That explains why he looks so exhausted. Is he going home or to school?"

Serena shrugged. "I'm sure he's going home because his clothes are clean and he isn't smelly or anything. He left _really _late last night, though. As for school, yesterday he never left and I'm positive he had three classes. Today when I finally got back here to my room around two, he was already reading to Hotaru. My roommate." She clarified as she saw Ami's curious look. "I asked him if he went to class or not but he just said I should rest 'cause I looked tired." The blonde rolled her eyes but there was a smile on her face. "Since it's Tuesday, his classes were in the morning so I have no idea if he actually did go or not…"

Ami shook her head in amazement. "He must be very worried. I would never have thought he would stay here this long, however. Considering how you two act around one another."

Serena gave Darien a considering look before nodding slowly and looking back at Ami. "I think I scared him when I fainted. Especially when my back started bleeding…"

Ami's head snapped up, her eyes sharp and considering. "Fainted? _Bleeding?_ Why exactly are you here, Serena? Were you injured?"

The blonde's brow furrowed in confusion. "Motoki hasn't told you what the official story is? Darien said he's been telling all the regulars at the arcade."

"No. I--I haven't gone there all weekend. Things…" Ami stopped, shaking her head. "I was too overwhelmed to go to school yesterday as well, so I only found out you were in the hospital when I returned today but not why. I rushed right over here as soon as I could leave cram school…"

"Oh." Serena whispered as she began plucking at her blanket. "I--I'm sort of here because of what the others did while I was at Minako's apartment, I guess. I fainted when I saw the news footage of the battle … Makoto… died in," both girls simultaneously flinched at the reminder of their deceased friend, "but apparently my injuries started bleeding while I was unconscious and Motoki, the one that brought me here, freaked out."

A frown formed on Ami's face. "The others--? But you did not seem injured when you were at school."

"Guess I'm a better actor that you thought, huh? I was in pain the whole time." The blonde have a faint smile. "I took like three painkillers with my lunch."

"H-how badly did they injure you?" Ami asked hesitantly. "Was it truly so bad that Motoki felt you needed to go to the hospital?"

Serena smile slipped, gaining a touch of bitterness. "I was unconscious for days at that apartment, Ami. Everything is pretty hazy but I can remember Minako crying over what had happened while the others were gone. She would apologize to me when she thought I was too out of it. Usually I was but something about her words always made me listen and forgive her. She never hurt me like Rei and Luna did. She would help; bandaging and feeding me when the others were gone for long periods of time."

"How bad, Serena?" Ami insisted fiercely, though her voice was quieter, more sorrowful, this time. "Tell me. Please."

Serena sighed, thinking back to when she'd looked in a mirror after waking up at home so long ago. "…I'm not really sure. When I finally saw myself, I'd already been cleaned up and everything. From what I remember I was bruised a lot and even burned a few times by Rei's hands. Something would always cut me too… I still don't know if that was Luna's claws or not." She was on a roll now, unable to stop the words from flowing out of her mouth. "Rei got a hold of Minako's heart chain once, you know. I have no idea how because Minako had been so mad and surprised but Rei still used it. Darien had to stitch my back and my stomach; right in the places it hit me. The doctors said that I was lucky the 'youma' hadn't damaged my spine. I could have been paralyzed." She finally stopped, wondering how she could talk about everything so carelessly. _'I might have __**died **__from blood loss, even, if Darien hadn't taken care of me but I'm acting like it's nothing. Is it really that surreal to me still? …I suppose it is. I never thought any of them would ever do that to me.'_

Ami slapped a hand over her mouth to stifle her sudden horrified sob. "I--I… Oh, _goodness_. I'm so sorry, Serena. If only Makoto and I arrived sooner…" She shook her head, a few tears leaking out before her eyes snapped up. "W-what do you mean Darien had to stitch you and what youma are you talking about? Is--is that how you explained you injuries to everyone? The doctors and your parents?"

Serena winced as she realized her mistake. _'It won't hurt to lie just a little, right? Even if I only tell Ami that Darien is Tuxedo Mask, she'd be obligated to tell the others and I know how they think of him. I don't want Darien to be thought of the same way…' _"While I was still unconscious Darien told everyone that I was a victim in a youma attack and _that _was how I got my injuries." Serena said, firmly reminding herself that _was _the truth; he _had _told everyone that.

"Why in the world would he say that?" Ami asked, genuinely puzzled. "Unless… unless you told him that or--or he knew the truth and was covering for you. He doesn't know the truth, though, right?"

Serena grimaced at both Ami's desperate tone and the fact she _was _going to have to lie. "No. He doesn't know the truth. Darien… he found me. He told everyone that I had gone to _him_, though, and not the hospital because I hadn't wanted to worry my parents. I guess he knew that if he'd said I was just lying on the ground somewhere, my parents would have freaked out. They would have thought about what would have happened if I was never found and I'd have been forbidden from going anywhere myself ever again."

"Darien _found _you?" Ami asked quietly before gasping as she remembered what Rei had told her and Makoto what seemed like ages ago. "Serena… how did you get away from everyone? From Rei?"

The girl frowned pensively, not seeing Ami's uneasy look. "I have no idea. All I know is that one day I just woke up in Darien's apartment. He said he found me and took me there to bandage me up. He, uh, thinks a youma did it because I was all alone and it was so late at night. I let him think that and it ended up being the story. Well, except that part about finding me. Like I said I went to him in his version…" She trailed off, desperately hoping Ami bought her story. Thankfully her friend didn't look suspicious in the least. _'It's not like a lied __**a lot. **__Darien really did find me. I was just with Rei at the time and we don't know how we got away from her or back to his apartment. Wait a minute.'_ "Why exactly was I with Rei, Ami? I thought I was at Minako's."

The bluenette opened her mouth before she suddenly paled and peeked back at Darien. "I do not think we should be discussing this here and now. Especially _here_, in a public hospital with Darien and your roommate present. They could wake up or someone else could come in any minute. It's a miracle that neither of those has happened yet."

"_Ames_." Serena said gently as the girl began pulling at the bottom button on her shirt in worry. "It's all right, trust me. There are no cameras here, I highly doubt anyone else is going to visit me today, and the nurse said she'd check up on me at seven. That's a whole two hours from now. As for Darien and Hotaru, he resorted to reading her a textbook about an hour ago when he ran out of other books. They both almost immediately fell asleep so I'm sure they're going to stay asleep for _quite _awhile."

"Are you positive?"

Serena grinned as she looked over at the duo. "Yup. You can see how tired Darien looks from here. It's obvious he hasn't been sleeping much lately and Hotaru is constantly being sent to one doctor or another. I'm positive they're both more tired than _I _am and the doctor said I'm suffering from exhaustion. So go ahead and tell me. Please, I need to know what's going on."

After a minute, Ami nodded. "I suppose it should be fine then. …You know how you were being held at Minako's apartment?" Serena gave a silent nod. "Things happened then that neither Makoto nor I told you. But, given your current situation and the recent events, you need to know now more than ever."

"Okay…" Serena said slowly, watching as a dozen emotions began flashing through her friend's sad eyes.

"From what I understand," Ami began. "you were meant to stay at that apartment until the situation was resolved. However, after some time, Luna and Rei decided it would be best to move you to the temple. In their opinion Minako hadn't been watching you properly." A pensive frown crossed her lips. "You said Minako would help you when the others were gone and I believe they suspected that as well. In any case, when Sailor Mars and Luna arrived at Minako's late at night, they found her asleep with a day's worth of movies beside her. Angry at the irresponsibility, Mars grabbed you, left Luna behind, and went home…"

Serena pursed her lips, seeing something in Ami's eyes that told her Rei held the missing piece of how she'd gotten away. "Go on…"

"When she arrived at the shrine, Mars de-transformed only to be attacked minutes later." Ami paused, giving Serena an even stare. "Her assailant claimed you were his _wife_. …She believes he was a Dark Kingdom general because of his exhibition of incredible power. Luna believes that is the case as well."

Serena gaped at her friend in disbelief, hoping to find a sign of amusement or deceit but knowing she wouldn't. "A man who said I was his wife." She repeated slowly, shaking her head against the horror she was beginning to feel. "A possible _Dark Kingdom _general who said I was his _wife_." When Ami nodded, her face completely serious, Serena gave a shrill, yet quiet, laugh. "Oh god! It's true isn't it? I really am a betrayer and for goodness sakes I was married to a Dark Kingdom general!"

Ami shook her head quickly. "No, no. We only have Rei's word that it could have been a general."

"But you are not saying that this man _didn't _exist." The bluenette said nothing, making Serena pale nervously. "Y-you have proof that a man like that existed that night."

"Yes." Ami finally whispered after a moment, her head bowing sadly. "My Mercury Mini-Computer received some off-the-chart energy spikes that night. It was like nothing I've seen before and I know that a man like Rei described had to have caused them. There's no other explanation because no youma appeared that night."

"How long have you known about this?"

Ami lifted her head, frowning as she saw the sheer defeat in her friend's eyes that wasn't there a minute ago. "…About a week. Rei told us the day that cup shattered in Darien's hand."

Serena looked over at the said man, recalling the bandaged hands she had forgotten all about, before quickly shaking her head to get back on track. "How strong did Rei say this supposed general was?"

"She said and I quote _'more so than Jadeite and Nephrite put together, without a doubt'_. He blasted her into a wall and created cuts on both her cheek and neck. She stated he wasn't even fazed when she threw a fireball at him; he simply sidestepped it and rendered her unconscious before making off with you."

Serena's eyes grew wide, alarmed at the thought of such a man taking her. "_Wow_. And for your computer to get those readings, it _must _be true." She blinked her eyes a few times when they grew bleary. "I really did betray everyone then. Or, at least, my _husband _did."

"…Rei couldn't truly see her attacker that night, because of the lateness of the hour and its darkness, but she insinuated he could have been the general you fought with. The one from the first fight with Maerina when you and Tuxedo Mask disappeared." Ami offered hesitantly.

"But that general didn't seem very powerful, especially not more than the previous generals combined. He never said anything about being my husband than either." The blonde replied slowly, her brow crinkled in thought. "He said his name was-- was Zoicite; that was it! He had long blonde hair and green eyes, was kind of on the vain side because when Tuxedo Mask nicked him with a rose he yelled something about his beautiful face…"

Ami shook her head slowly, a small smile on her face. "That doesn't sound like the man Rei described. She said his sole goal was getting you away from her. Not gathering energy, not creating havoc, not caring about his looks, or anything else. Hmm. She claimed he wore armor and carried a sword, did this Zoicite?"

"He was only wearing that hideous plain gray uniform like Jadeite and Nephrite wore; no armor or a sword _anywhere_." Serena smiled slightly, hope blossoming in her chest. "I remember seeing a flash of him in the news footage Friday. _That _was the general Tuxedo Mask and I fought with that night. The one that called all those youma."

"You're absolutely right!" Ami gasped, "He never said his name and didn't stay long but that man is exactly how you described Zoicite. Blonde hair, green eyes, and he even disappeared when Jupiter got a hit at his jaw." She grinned, feeling the same hope Serena was. "Zoicite certainly doesn't seem like the type who would change his appearance simply to take you away. As a matter of fact, now that I think about it, if that man -whoever he was- was indeed a Dark Kingdom general at all, he would have _wanted _Rei to know such a thing. He would have gladly pointed out what he was and that you had betrayed everyone alongside him. Such things would have lead to civil problems amongst the Senshi that would have distracted us from the battles and gave the Dark Kingdom a better chance of defeating us. Yet he did no such thing. He simply wanted _you_. End of story."

"But then _who _was that man that attacked Rei? Was -_am_- I really his wife?" Serena groaned as she looked up at the ceiling. "And here I thought I had hit rock bottom when everyone accused me of betraying the Moon Princess and the Silver Millennium in the first place." When Ami didn't say anything, the blonde frowned and looked over to see her friend had gone deathly still. "What's wrong?"

The blue-haired girl flinched at the comment, her lips parting slightly. "I… I'm just so sorry that all this has happened to you. The injuries, this strange man kidnapping you from Rei, who in turn had practically kidnapped you from your life." She sighed shakily as a few tears slipping out of her eyes. "Like everyone, Makoto and I _honestly _believed you had been visiting sick relatives until Minako finally told us the truth. Both of us insisted that we had a right to visit you, to make sure you were okay, but they wouldn't let us. In the end Makoto and I went to Minako's that night Rei moved you, none the wiser to what was happening. We knew and agreed it wasn't right to hold you like a traitor so we had had hopes of freeing you but when we got there, the whole apartment was empty. We were confused but secretly hoped that maybe you had escaped yourself. At least, that was until Rei's story came into light. Absolutely _no one _knew where you were until you were suddenly back to your daily life and now this is happening…"

"It's fine, Ames." Came the soft reply as a few grateful tears escaped Serena's eyes. Even though both Makoto and Ami had told her that they'd tried to free her when she returned to school that early morning, it was still hard to believe they cared about her so much. "I'm alive, after all, and if everything goes well I'll be released by the end of the week."

Ami shook her head violently. "No. It's not fine. I knew that they were holding you, treating you like a traitor, but I honestly hoped that they would never hurt you. _Especially _physically. I suppose it was naïve of me to think such a thing, considering they just attacked you and arrested you out of the blue one night, but I wanted to believe…" She sighed, rubbing a hand over her face tiredly. "I wish I could have done _something_ or at least tried to break you out much sooner."

"All of that is in the past now. I will go on being a Senshi and eventually we will put this all behind us." Serena replied, expecting her friend to nod and agree with her. Instead, however, Ami sobbed and hung her head sorrowfully. "What… what's wrong?"

"It's not that simple, Serena." The girl said quietly, sniffing a few times. "None of it is anymore."

Serena frowned as she leaned forward slightly. "What else has happened? Why are you acting like this, Ami?" The girl shook her head again, short blue hair flying wildly. "You're… you're scaring me, Ames."

When the bluenette looked up a minute or two later, Serena felt tears prickling the back of her eyes at the unbelievably sad expression she saw. As Ami took a deep breath, Serena's heart began to beat wildly in response. "The Princess came to us. In person."

Slowly Serena snapped her mouth shut before bringing a startled hand to her heart, wondering if it was healthy for it to stop so suddenly after beating so fiercely. "The _Moon _Princess? She came to you guys?" Ami nodded somberly, a dark expression in her eyes that caused the blonde to swallow nervously. "What--what is it? Shouldn't it be a _good _thing that the Princess has been found?"

"There's more." The girl's head bowed down and her hands began picking agitatedly at her uniform once more. "Princess Serenity told us… she informed the Senshi and Luna that there was never a Sailor Moon in the Silver Millennium. She didn't exist."

Serena's eyes widened and a few tears leaked out at the sudden movement. "W--what? That can't possibly be right. I… I'm _Sailor Moon _and Luna told me that I lived on the Moon Kingdom with the rest of the Senshi. We--we all protected the Moon Princess and everything."

"Not everything Luna said was completely true, Serena. She's _human_." Ami looked up slowly, her eyes filled with shocked dismay. "She looks only a handful of years older than we are; in her mid-twenties maybe. The Princess informed us that is how Luna has always been and looked like. Always a human."

"Ami… Luna's a _feline _guardian. She-- she has this weird black-gray-purple-ish _fur_, a--a crescent moon on her forehead that everyone else thinks is a bald spot, and four legs and a _tail_! I mean, sure, she thinks like a human and has emotions like a human b-_but_," Serena stuttered desperately, "she never said anything about _being _a human."

"I'm not making this up." Ami shook her head slightly. "I would never have even thought of such a thing. When I went to the meeting yesterday at the shrine, a beautiful woman with Luna's coloring was sitting in the room. As soon as she opened her mouth I _knew _it was her. Princess Serenity told us that she fixed Luna's transformation so she won't have to pretend to be a cat anymore."

"I don't understand…" Serena whispered as she blinked her teary eyes. She suddenly sucked in a deep breath. "What about the dreams Luna had? I couldn't have been leaving with the Dark Kingdom generals and _destroying _the Moon Kingdom if I didn't exist, right?"

The bluenette's hands clinched together, her knuckles a stark white. "Luna said you weren't in a Senshi uniform in any of the dreams. You were a civilian."

"And she never thought to mention this!?" Serena yelled before shooting a panicked glance to Darien and Hotaru. Both were shifting slightly but, thankfully, after a moment stopped and their breathing evened out again. "Those dreams," Serena continued on in a whisper, "are partially the reason why I'm in this hospital! If Luna hadn't told anyone about them, my body would never have been used as target practice!"

"I asked why she never mentioned you were a civilian." Ami said quietly, trying to keep her tone gentle, "Luna claimed that, at the time, she hadn't thought it held any significance. She simply thought you were out of uniform."

"They… they still think I betrayed the Moon Kingdom and the Royal family, don't they?" Serena questioned desperately. "They think I was always _with _the Dark Kingdom and not _against _them?" Ami nodded slowly and Serena bit her lip to muff a cry. "What…what's going to happen to me now?"

The uniform-clad girl sighed sorrowfully, running a hand across her eyes to wipe up the moisture there. "The Princess has no recollection of who you were but given the fact that Rei said a possible Dark Kingdom general forcibly removed you from her holding and called you his wife…" She stopped and shook her head helplessly.

Serena waited for her friend to continue but when she stayed silent, she sniffled and grabbed Ami's hand to squeeze it pleadingly. "Please tell me, Ames. I don't like being shut out like this."

"Everything is gone, Serena. _Everything_. Your--your powers and standing have permanently been stripped from you." Ami replied as she squeezed her eyes shut from the look in the blonde's eyes. Serena utterly heartbroken and she herself wasn't fair from it. "You are no longer a Senshi and if you appear at any youma battle, we -the rest of the Senshi- have been charged with arresting you once more."

"For _what_?" Serena did an odd combination of a squeak and a choke, forcing her to grimace. "They can't arrest me if I happen to want to save someone!"

"Not that…" Ami tightened her hold on Serena's hand. "Princess Serenity has no doubts that the dreams are true. Apparently Luna was one of the Queen's advisors and helped raise and teach the Princess as she grew up. She has utter faith in Luna's words and if Luna thinks you should be arrested, then you _are _to be arrested." She paused and bit her lip. "You…you've been determined to be a danger to the Moon Kingdom and its only surviving heir. A threat of the highest degree."

"So when the woman I've dedicated all my time for these past few months finally appears out of nowhere, she has complete confidence in a cat that didn't even know she was really human, and suddenly I'm the greatest threat to her!?" Serena hissed, anger and resentment swelling up for the monarch, before the fire abruptly died out of her. She pulled her hand out of Ami's and buried her face in her hands. "What am I going to do?" She wept desperately.

"Just…" Ami choked on her words and took a shakily breath. "We'll figure this out Serena. I _know _you didn't betray anyone. You couldn't possibly have."

Serena began to nod before she suddenly stopped, her head snapping up and a look of horror on her face. "You-- you aren't here to arrest me _now_, are you?"

Ami's eyes widened in horror and she shook her head vehemently; neither female seeing how Darien stilled before shifting closer to the duo. "No, no! Don't you dare think that! I'm here to tell you we're going to figure this out _together_! Remember all those books we were looking for you in?" Serena gave a small nod as she sniffled a few times. "I'm going to continue to look through them and so are you. We _are _going to find you and prove this is all a big misunderstanding. You're not a traitor and not a threat to Princess Serenity or the Moon Kingdom. We both know it and we just need proof for everyone else."

"And what about this so-called husband of mine?" The blonde couldn't help but question. "Even if we do manage to find something that proves I'm not a traitor in those old books, a man claiming to be my _husband _got me away from Rei and because of that the others think I'm some wife of a Dark Kingdom general! Besides, even _if _it's not Zoicite, he told Tuxedo Mask and me that he was the _third _general, that means there are more and I could be married to one."

"I know it's not true. You can't be married to some evil general." Ami insisted. "And it _wasn't _Zoicite, it's only obvious. He never mentioned anything about being married to you when it was just Tuxedo Mask and yourself or even at Friday's battle. He isn't similar to the man Rei described either. So don't go thinking that you're married to Zoicite, okay? And think about this: if the man that attacked Rei was your husband, would he have left you somewhere for _Darien _to find? No. If he was married to you and, more importantly, a Dark Kingdom general you would be in the Dark Kingdom right now _with _him. Not here."

Serena gave a thin but grateful smile at her friend's words. "I--I guess all that's true. We just have to figure this out. Anything can be possible, right?"

Ami nodded solemnly. "Yes. Nothing is positive and absolute, Serena, so don't give up. Please."

"Okay," Serena murmured quietly, "…but what are you going to do when the Princess orders you to arrest me? We both know that she is going to sooner or later. Especially since I'm such a big threat to her."

"I won't do it." Ami replied, her eyes narrowed determinedly. "You are my friend and I would never do anything like that to you. You've already been mistreated enough by the others."

The bedridden girl gave a small, sad smile. "I don't think you're going to have a say in this. Your _Princess _is going to demand that you arrest me sometime or other and me? I'm going to let you. There shouldn't be a choice. I…I'm a _nobody_. Especially now since I'm not even a Senshi."

"Don't say that!" Ami snapped as she surged to her feet. "Don't you dare say you're a nobody! You are my friend; my only friend now that-- now that Makoto died." All the intensity suddenly died out of the girl and she crumpled back into the chair. "Don't make me do this, Serena. Don't make me have to choose between the two of you. I--I don't think I could make the right choice. Princess Serenity may be my Princess but you-- you're my _friend_."

"Ami…"

"No, please listen to me, Serena." She swiftly interjected, pausing to wait for Serena to nod. Once she did, Ami took a deep breath. "It… it's already hard enough staying with the others as it is. I knew what they were doing, how they were treating you, but I still decided to stay with them for the sake of my _duty_." She uncharacteristically spat the word 'duty' out like it was a curse as she ran a hand through her hair, looking at her friend with haunted eyes. "But it is an entirely different matter to see you here and now. You're in a hospital and could have been _paralyzed_ because of what the others did as a result of a handful of _dreams_. How can I stay with the Senshi knowing what has happened to you was caused by them?"

"But you will stay and we both know it." Serena replied; no accusation was in her tone, only understanding. "You always take your duties seriously, Ami, and this is the most important one of them all. Think about it. What kept you staying with the others despite everything happening lately? Why did you accept being Sailor Mercury even?"

Ami's eyes gained a far-off look. "At first, I wanted to protect the new friend I had just made. A friend who had never looked at my hair color oddly, or thought I was a snob because of my timidity, or believed I was a loony because of my study habits and IQ. I wanted to protect her and knew that if I didn't accept being a Senshi, she would stay all alone."

Serena smiled softly, her eyes glassy. "Ames…"

"--I wanted to protect my mother as well." Ami continued on, "Then as time went on, I gained more friends I wanted to protect from the Dark Kingdom and I learned that one day this great Lunarian Princess would come that would help keep everyone I love safe. And now that Princess is here." The bluenette sighed. "…How do I know this is right though? I've barely spoken to Princess Serenity so how can I just abandon you for a stranger? A woman I'm supposed to protect with all my life but I don't even remember."

"I can't tell you if it's right or not, Ami. That's for you to determine but… I think you should give the others a chance again. Give the Princess a chance." Serena answered with a watery smile. "And you aren't abandoning me. You're here now, aren't you?"

"How can you be so sure about this?" Ami sniffled a few times. "How do you know everything will be okay?"

"Because one way or another things will work out."

"And what if things work out the _wrong _way? What then, Serena?" Ami bowed her head, her fingers working at the last button on her shirt frantically again. "What--what if Luna's dreams were true?"

"Then I will take my punishment. That's all I can do. …If I'm a traitor..." The blonde stopped, unable to go on with her thoughts.

Ami looked up sharply at Serena's subdued tone and she unconsciously learned forward, looking into the girl's determined, but sad, eyes. "No, _please_. Promise that you won't just give up and accept that as your fate, Serena."

The bedridden girl focused in on Ami's eyes and smiled softy at the care she saw in them. "As long as you promise that you will do as your Princess orders. If I find my way to a youma attack and she orders you to arrest me, promise me that you will."

"I can't do that!" Ami gasped.

Serena shook her head as the sad, small smile returned to her lips. "I'll make this easy for you then. I won't willingly go searching out for a youma battle. I promise."

"And what if you get caught in an attack?" Ami asked, a frantic tone obvious in her quiet voice. "You don't have powers anymore! Do you expect me to just stand by idly and let you possibly die at the hands of the Dark Kingdom. Then, if you _thankfully _don't, you expect me to arrest you for treason?"

Serena sighed. "No. I don't expect you to do either of those. I _want _you to. Princess Serenity is your Princess, your _sovereign_. I'm just your friend and I certainly won't stand in the way. Especially if it turns out that my previous loyalties didn't lie with you guys."

"I told you I can't choose between you two."

"I know." Serena smiled tightly, a wealth of sadness in the expression. "That's why I'm making the choice for you. It will be your Princess, it always will be."

"You just can't make that choice for me Serena! It's mine to make!" Ami replied harshly, the button finally being pulled off under the constant pulling it was enduring.

"It will tear you up inside to make it, Ames." Serena said, her blue eyes soft with empathy. "I can't let you destroy yourself like that. I already promised I won't willingly go searching for fights. If I hear one, I'll do everything in my abilities to walk away but if I can't…"

"If you want me to do this, then you will do everything in your power to walk away." Ami replied as she sniffled once more. She took a deep breath after a moment and dashed a hand across her eyes. "If you hear an attack, you will turn the other way and walk. Don't listen, don't think, just _walk _away."

"And if I think one of you is on the verge of dying?" Serena asked hesitantly.

"You will walk."

"I don't think I could." The blonde insisted, her eyes flaring wide at the thought of doing such a horrible and unspeakable thing. "No matter what's happened, every single one of you is important to me. I couldn't bear to lose anyone."

"And I don't think I could arrest you, Serena." Ami shook her head, a frown on her face. "But… if you expect a promise out of me, you have to make one of your own in return. It's the only way I will agree to do as Princess Serenity orders if it involves arresting you."

"So, you will arrest me and do anything else Princess Serenity orders despite what it is…" Serena began.

"As long as you do everything in your power to stay away from every youma attack and not willingly seek out either the Senshi or an attack. It will not matter if you believe we are dying or not, you will walk away from any attack you hear or come across." Ami finished seriously.

Serena eyed her friend for a long minute before slowly nodding. Seconds later she was sticking out her hand. "I promise."

Ami shook the offered appendage firmly but gently, trying to avoid the largest of the bruises staining the skin there. "I promise as well."

The blonde sighed, dropping the hand to lay it beside her again uncaringly. "You know, I never thought I would ever be having this conversation."

"Me neither. I am just glad that I learned where you were before the others did." At Serena's curious look, Ami elaborated. "Because of Princess Serenity's sudden appearance, as well as Makoto's sudden death, we've all been shell-shocked. None of us have gone to the arcade and I doubt we will do so anytime soon. Luna wants to devote all our free time to protecting the princess and updating her on the events of the past few months. I…I'm not going to tell them that you're here, either. If they want to go to the arcade or happen to run into Motoki, I'll distract them somehow. At least until you are released."

"Thank you." Serena breathed gratefully. "I--I can't face any of them just yet. Not while I'm stuck in this place practically bedridden. Thank you for warning me about what's been going on too."

"I only wish I could warn Tuxedo Mask as well." Ami uttered sadly as she fiddled with her broken button. "He truly needs a fair warning."

Serena stiffened abruptly, her face gaining an ashen tint. "What…what are they going to do to him?"

"It's his association with you." The bluenette admitted sorrowfully. "Luna asked the Princess if she knew anyone that went by the name Tuxedo Mask or if she had any male protectors. The Princess's guard, according to Serenity herself, only consisted of four _female _protectors. Like Sailor Moon, there was no Tuxedo Mask in the Silver Millennium."

Serena gasped, fear growing wildly for her male friend. "Is--is he going to be arrested too? Like I was?"

Ami winced at the blonde's frantic tone, hating that she was being the bearer of such terrible news. "I don't know. As you are aware, the others already thought he was a threat since he never told us his reasoning for aiding us. Now that the Princess has said she knew of no male that fit Tuxedo Mask's description and the fact that Rei pointed out he only saved _you_… He is in bigger trouble, Serena." Ami sighed sadly. "I just don't know what Princess Serenity is going to order when she sees him in the flesh. I'm afraid it might be his death because of how negatively the others are portraying him."

Serena's breath seized in her throat and she was hard pressed not to look at Darien. If she looked now, Ami would know for sure that somehow he was involved in all this; perhaps even figuring out he was Tuxedo Mask. _'And there is no way I am going to put either of my friends in that position.' _"What are you going to do if she orders you to k-kill him?" She stuttered.

"I don't think I could. Just like I couldn't willingly arrest you." Ami replied. "Frankly speaking, like the others I _have _always been wary of Tuxedo Mask because I never knew where he stood. But, in my mind, I knew he was against the Dark Kingdom and that was good enough for me. Besides," she narrowed her eyes in thought, "I also entertained thoughts that he was on _your _side, Serena. On Sailor Moon's side."

"Why do you think that?"

"He always protected and defended you, no matter from who. Like the fight when Rei slapped you and he jumped down and began yelling, surprising us all." Ami smiled slightly. "I will always be thankful that he did something to defend you when I didn't. I was just too stunned, I think. It's not an excuse, of course, but I had never previously considered that Rei would ever use physical violence against you."

Serena couldn't help but laugh mirthlessly. "I think it's been established that Rei is more than eager to hit me. That slap was nothing compared to what she did to me later."

The bluenette's eyes watered at the girl's tone and she couldn't stop herself from looking away in shame. "Serena… I'm sorry. I know it's meaningless since it has already happened but I _am_. Everyone is so fixated on what they think you supposedly did that they refuse to stop and realize you aren't the same person. It was a lifetime and ten thousand years ago, _if _you even did it. And I never did anything to stop them or protect you…I feel so guilty for the things I never did. If I could, I would do anything to get you out of this situation."

"No, stop it Ami. You have nothing to feel guilty for." Serena answered as she reached over to grab her friend's hand. "I shouldn't be talking like that, anyways. It's not fair to wallow in self pity when one of my best friends _died _just a few days ago. I'm the one that should be feeling guilty."

"It's all right, Serena. I think you deserve it in light of all that you've gone through recently." Ami gave a bittersweet smile before the expression faded into a serious one. "What are we going to do without Makoto, though?"

The blonde shook her head sadly as she released Ami's hand. "I don't know. I just know it isn't right."

"It isn't." Came the somber reply, "If everything was alright, neither of us would be in this hospital. Instead we would be at the temple listening to Makoto tell us some ridiculous story about how the boy in her English class looks just like her old boyfriend."

Serena giggled quietly. "I'm sure she would be." She sighed again, her expression saddening. "I miss her so much. It doesn't seem real… I can't imagine how it is at school."

"It was terrible today. I kept looking over at her seat, expecting her to be there passing notes or making faces at the teacher. When I found out you were in the hospital and had been all weekend I was so worried that you were dying too." Ami admitted as she looked down at her hands. "I don't want to be alone."

Serena smiled softly. "You know you're not alone, Ames. You have Rei, Minako, Luna, and now the Princess. Plus everyone at school. You have tons of people with you."

The bluenette shook her head. "That's not what I meant. Of course I have other people physically around me, most people do. _Emotionally_, however, it's felt like it's just been Makoto, you, and myself. Particularly lately as I cannot consider the others friends when they did the things they did to you; they are only _coworkers _these days. Now with Makoto gone…"

"You still have me though." Serena interjected firmly, "You'll always be my friend no matter what has to happen between us." She continued on quickly as Ami opened her mouth. "Then there's Motoki, he has always been a friend to all of us. Oh! You can't forget Darien. You have the same profession of being a doctor in mind and all. No matter how many times I call him mean or a jerk-wad, he really is still a good person. He's always willing to listen and help."

"Thank you. I supposed I simply needed to be reminded of that."

Serena's look was sheepish. "Truthfully those same thoughts have run through my mind recently. I was terrified that it would just be me and me alone. But here you are and Darien's been here all weekend and Motoki's wandering around somewhere too. There's always a friend somewhere; we just have to look."

"You're right. We just need to look for them and they'll be there for us."

Serena smiled as she leaned forward. Thanks to Darien's healing abilities she could sit up all the way now without pain but her body still protested the movements and the bandages tried to keep her in place. "Ami… help me out will you." She begged as she opened her arms. "I can't move much farther without pulling my stitches but we both really need hugs right now."

Ami looked up and gave a watery laugh. Seconds later she was leaning over to hug Serena back cautiously, trying to avoid hurting her friend more than necessary. "We'll get through this, Serena. We'll figure out what we're going to do."

The blonde squeezed her friend around the shoulders one more time before flopping back with a slight wince. "Sorry, I couldn't sit up anymore with all those bandages digging into me." She explained as she watched Ami sit back down.

The bluenette's expression was full of gratitude. "It's all right. You were right though, I really did need that hug. …This certainly is a draining conversation, isn't it?"

Serena sighed, a small wryly smile playing on her lips. "More than I thought possible." Suddenly she froze, the smile slipping off her face. "How-- how are we going to explain why Makoto isn't showing up at school?"

Ami froze as well. "Oh, dear. No one has discussed this yet. Even if it has only been two days--" She paused and shook her head.

"--someone is going to get in trouble." Serena finished for her friend. "Makoto should have been at an orphanage somewhere because she was only sixteen but she wasn't. And even if she's been living by herself for a while, she told the school she was living with _parents_."

Ami grimaced as she realized the a full fledge police investigation would happen if no one explained the girl's disappearance and soon. "Wait… now that Luna is human do you think I could convince her to pretend to be Makoto's mother and drop her out of school?"

"It would be the only way otherwise the police will eventually get involved." Serena answered before frowning as something occurred to her. "Luna could use my…" she shook her head lightly, "_The _Luna Pen. I can't imagine what she looks like as a human but she could use it to make her look more like Makoto, I suppose. Besides, she probably wants it since I'm not a Sen--_Senshi _anymore anyways."

Ami frowned as she saw the tears gathering in Serena's eyes, despite how much the girl was obviously trying to keep them at bay. "Serena…"

"No, no." Came the quick response, "Just give me a second. I'll be okay. Just---just something in my eye, is all." Serena giggled as she blinked a few times. "See? I'm okay. Now, I should probably get the pen and everything else, huh?" Ami winced as she watched Serena gesture in the air. When nothing appeared, the girl tried again and again before stopping and heaving a heavy sigh. "The subspace pocket is gone forever, isn't it? Since I'm not a Senshi anymore."

Ami pursed her lips, trying not to let tears flood into her eyes at the look on her friend's face. "I believe it collapsed. It wouldn't exist anymore because they were created the day when we first transformed into our respective stations. With that station gone, it would have no need to exist anymore."

Serena's brow furrowed. "But then… what happened to everything I stored in it? They---they didn't disappear with it, did they!?" Her expression became panicked, worried that the disappearance of all the Senshi belongings would make the others hate her even more.

"They have your broach, transformation pen, and everything else Senshi related, Serena." Ami informed the girl, trying to calm her down. "Rest assured, I saw them with my own eyes. Princess Serenity told us about a ritual where when Luna declared you were no longer a Senshi, all powers and Senshi-related belongings would automatically revert back to her, the guardian. They did so about twenty minutes later."

"What about everything else non-Senshi related? Did they appear after Luna did that ritual-thing?" The blonde asked as she leaned back further on her pillows, trying to accept everything calmly but knowing she wasn't fooling either Ami or herself.

The bluenette's brow furrowed in thought before shaking her head slowly. "No, they didn't. Only belongings Luna gave you returned. It would make sense that everything else would revert back to _their _owner. Which is you, of course, so I wouldn't be surprised if your belongings are back at your house."

Serena was about to comment but a hauntingly familiar beeping interrupted her. She froze, her mouth halfway open as tears began flowing down her cheeks once more. The bluenette froze as well before slowing looking at Serena. "I--I'll stay with you if that's what you want…."

Serena shook her head quickly, a shaky smile spreading across her face. "No, no. Don't be silly, Ami. I'm fine."

"Are-are you sure?" The girl questioned even as she stuffed the broken button into her pocket and dug for the offending blue device. When it was out of the confines of her book bag, the Senshi communicator's beeping seemingly reached a piercing level. Ami looked up, her face completely serious. "I--I won't go if you aren't alright with this."

Serena forced a encouraging smile on her face but she knew it was too stiff to pass as real. "Go. Go protect Tokyo, Miss Sailor Mercury." She paused suddenly, her smile becoming real. "Just promise me one more thing, okay?"

Ami winced as she felt a few tears slid down her cheeks but still nodded, determined to help her friend in any way. "Anything."

"If Zoicite's there at the battle… could you kick his butt really hard for me? For Makoto's sake?"

"Kick some Dark Kingdom butt for Makoto? Sure. I'm positive she'd appreciate it, even." Ami's soft smile slipped as she watched Serena look down at her lap. "It will work out, Serena. I promise." The returning beeps of the communicator finally spurred Ami into action. In a flurry of movements, she picked up her book bag, shoved it onto her shoulder, straightened her uniform, and smile reassuringly at Serena as the girl met her eyes. Just as quickly Ami was racing away, her voice urgent and quiet as she slammed the hospital room door open.

Serena watched her friend go until the heavy door finally closed. Then, as if the shutting of that door had opened the one inside her heart, she squeezed her eyes shut as sobs abruptly seized the breath from her lungs. She laid there, her breathing heavy and gasps erupting out every few breaths before snapping her eyes open. She stared up at the plain white ceiling unseeing. "H-how long have you been awake?"

There was silence before she heard the slight rustle of clothing moving again. "Since Ami came in."

She blinked blurry eyes, listening to the slight scrap of wood against linoleum as Darien stood. When he didn't say anything else, she finally looked over to see he had only taken two steps closer to her. He was watching her intently though, so she looked back up at the ceiling and wiped away her tears. "Is--is Hotaru…?"

"No. She's still sleeping soundly." She heard him walking closer, the slight rustle of his jeans and his breaths becoming louder. When she glanced at him, his blob-like figure was slowly sitting in the chair Ami had just vacated, as if he was afraid to make any sudden movements.

"Why didn't you say something?" She questioned quietly after she sniffled a few times.

He sighed. "Because you needed to talk with someone who understood your situation better than I did. If I had shown I was awake, Ami might have left and who knows when she would have returned and talked with you."

"Now you understand what's happened though."

"Yes." He paused and Serena's brow crinkled slightly as she sensed him leaning toward her. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Tell you what?" She whispered distractedly, wondering when she had begun to _sense _things about Darien. _'I suppose it was only a matter of time. I can sense things about Tuxedo Mask sometimes, after all. And they __**are **__the same person.'_

"That Rei did what she did because of your _cat_."

Serena gave a watery laugh, her thoughts scattering without a care, and looked out of the corner of her eye. "I don't think Luna would appreciate being called a cat right now. Not when she inexplicitly became a human."

"I beg to differ." Darien smirked slightly. "A cat is also a spiteful woman gossip. I believe that is the perfect thing to describe Luna. It's like you told Ami. If she hadn't mentioned these dreams of hers, then you wouldn't have been injured."

She gave another watery chuckle, even as the tears broke through the dam in her eyes and a few more slipped down her cheeks. "That may be true but it's not very nice."

He scowled, the look full of anger. "I don't feel like being nice to Luna right now. Not after I just learned what I did."

"Are you going to hate the Senshi now?" Serena whispered quietly as she shifted her eyes back to the ceiling, afraid to see his expression when he answered.

He was silent and she was just about to ask him if he heard her when she felt someone touch her shoulder. Startled, she looked over to see him leaning over her with a teasing grin on his face. "I don't know about that. Sailor Moon is still my favorite."

She laughed, even if her next words were so uncharacteristically bitter. "Well, Sailor Moon doesn't exist anymore, does she?"

He sighed heavily and settled back into his chair. "_I _think she does. As a matter of fact I'm looking at her right now."

"I think you're looking at a traitor." Serena whispered sadly as looked back to the ceiling.

Darien ran a frustrated hand though his hair, trying to process all that he had learned. "These dreams, Serena… what makes you so sure they even exist in the first place? How do you know Luna isn't making them up? Or that it wasn't you she saw?"

Serena opened her mouth before closing it, a frown appearing as she looked back at him. "The fact that Luna would even believe I was a traitor, despite if the dreams are true or not, is what bothers me. I can readily accept the fact that I might have destroyed the Moon Kingdom and walked away with the Dark Kingdom generals and treated them as friends. What I can't accept is that Luna believes that I'm a traitor so easily. Not after all the things we been through and the time we spent together. The same with the others."

"_Do _you think that you betrayed everyone?" He questioned after a considering moment.

"No. Yes." She sighed sadly. "I don't know what I would have done in a past life. I can't remember anything about who I was, so how do I know if I'm the same or not? All I know is that I would never betray anyone _now_."

"And that's what matters. What you _will _do. Not what you might or might not have done."

"Not to them, though." She countered with a sad smile that caused Darien to frown. "They focus on the past. The past is what makes us…" she winced and blinked a tear out of her eyes, "-_them _Senshi. The duty we used to have in protecting Princess Serenity and defending the universe."

"Why should that duty transcend lifetimes?"

"Why _shouldn't _it?"

He shook his head. "So should I be out there now with the Senshi, risking possible death by their hands, just because of what I might have done in a past life?"

Serena froze at the reminder, scenes flashing through her mind's eye and each far worst than the last. If it wasn't Tuxedo Mask, it was Darien. On the way to school, at home, in the park late at night, or at a battle. Rei, Luna, Minako, flaming arrows, claws, a heart-link chain; all shapes and forms of attacks heading toward the man before her. Her breath caught in her throat as one scene played over and over: Darien being stabbed through the chest with a sharp sword, him coughing up blood.

"Serena." Darien said, more than a little worried as the girl began to shake and grow paler by the second. He called out again but her eyes only flooded with tears, so he leaned over and grabbed a hold of her chin to bring her focus back to him. "Odango, what's wrong?"

She blinked, a handful of tears falling down her cheeks. The last image just wouldn't go _away_. "This… this is all my fault." She whispered in dismay but ripping her chin out of his grip and squeezing her eyes shut. "All my stupid, stupid fault for being a klutz and a crybaby--"

"It's not--" He began but the girl didn't hear, only continuing with her rant as the horrible scenes of Darien being hurt or killed played over and over in her mind like a broken record.

"If--if I wasn't such a terrible Senshi, you'd never have had to save me. You wouldn't be dying now!" She sniffled, rubbing the heels of her hands into her eyes. "Everything is all my fault!"

"Hey, now." Darien interjected, grabbing her wrists and prying them away from her eyes. "Who said anything about me dying? I have absolutely no intention of racing out there after Ami and practically handing the Senshi my head on a platter when I arrive."

Serena winced as Darien's intended calming words gave way to an image of his head on a dining room table, an apple in his mouth as Rei and Luna cackled in glee behind him. She knew she was overreacting but she just _couldn't _stop. "This--this is still _my _fault though. If I wasn't so klutzy, or--or a failure---"

"Why do you always blame yourself, Serena?" Darien growled. "It was my choice to save you. _Mine_. And you're not a failure because I've never seen you give up on anything that matters to you in the entire time I've known you. _That's _what makes someone a failure: when they stop trying. And so what if you're a little klutzy? At least I know why now."

"W--why?" She whispered shakily. She was tempted to pull her wrists out of his grasp but she was afraid his eyes would turn golden again if she did. _'He's acting just like he was yesterday. All so serious and intense. Wh--what's going on with him lately? Or--or has he always been like this and I never realized it?'_

"Because you're from the Moon, of course." He replied with a teasing grin, making sure to keep the eye contact between the two of them. "You're not used to the gravity or something."

Her laugh was genuine, despite how hard she tried to restrain it. "…So now you're giving me excuses? Why can't you accept that it's _my _fault? You had to save pathetic little me in every single battle and now that you have, the Senshi are going to…" She bit her lip and shook her head, distantly noting that Darien was finally letting go of her captive wrists.

Darien sighed, realizing his effort in making Serena laugh only succeeded for mere seconds. "Odango. Have a little faith in me, will you? I am not going out there. I shutter at the thought of what they would do to me given what they did to _you_. You were once their friend, an incredibly close friend that shared a common secret yet they still did what they did easily…" He paused, his free hand forming into a tight fist. "I'm not going to another battle anytime soon so don't worry, okay?"

She frowned, rubbing away a few more tears irritably before giving the man a piercing glare. "No, you _will_. I know it because you're just like Ami. You take every duty seriously and I know that defeating the Dark Kingdom is your most important one. And--and just yesterday you told me that you never gave up before because if you did you'd never find out the reason why you're Tuxedo Mask! So how can you just walk away from everything like that?"

Darien's brow furrowed thoughtfully as he leaned back in his chair. "You're right. I do take my responsibilities and duties seriously. And I never gave up before because I believed I would never learn why I became Tuxedo Mask in the first place if I did." He narrowed his eyes as she opened her mouth triumphantly. "But you are also wrong. Not learning why I became Tuxedo Mask isn't the only reason why I decided to stay, remember? You were one of the reasons I never gave up too, Odango."

"HA!" She gloated triumphantly before realization dawned on her and she sobered up. "See, my fault."

"Since I do take my duties so seriously, Odango," Darien continued, ignoring the girl's words, "I am doing what I think is right. I'm going to stop fighting with the Senshi."

Serena gaped at him, sputtering in shock. "W--_what_? Did you not hear a single word of what I just said? You will never find out why you are Tuxedo Mask if you just give up! You'll always wonder and drive yourself crazy thinking of all the what ifs and then--!"

"Who said anything about me giving up that?" He counted lightly, a slight smile on his face. "I said I was going to stop fighting with the Senshi. It's that simple. No more youma fights for either of us. Maybe… maybe helping the Senshi was only _one _reason why I became Tuxedo Mask. Maybe there is another and I'll find it by doing this."

She frowned, not understanding. "What do you mean? You're not making any sense in the least! How the heck can you find another reason if you just stop helping the Senshi? I don't know about you but I don't know many professions that need a superhero besides what you already do!" She growled irritably.

He smirked. _'Ah. There's fighting Odango.'_ "You want to know something?" He ignored her exasperated expression and leaned forward again. "Even though I do not want anyone to fall prey to the Dark Kingdom, lately _Sailor Moon _has become the reason I continued to go to battles."

"But she doesn't--"

He cut Serena off with a withering glare. "_Even _if she doesn't think she exists anymore, Sailor Moon will always exist to _me_." He smirked as he reached over and tapped the edge of her nose. "She's inside of you, Odango. I know that you will try your hardest to keep your promise but something inside compels you to help people. Sailor Moon is that part of you."

Her frown deepened, still unbelievably confused. "You are still not making sense. As a matter of fact you're making it worse!"

He rolled his eyes. "Look, Odango. I'm your protector, right?"

She eyed him, not sure if it was a rhetorical question or not, but she finally answered slowly. "Yes… You have always protected me from… well, everything."

"Then as your protector, I would be failing you if I didn't _protect _you. It doesn't matter if you're Sailor Moon, Serena Tsukino, or Odango Atama. You're still the same person to me and Tuxedo Mask, Darien Shields, or The Jerk, will protect you from now on. I swear."

She gasped, her eyes flaring wide as she finally realized what he was saying. "You--you…" She shook her head in wonder. "You think the reason why you became Tuxedo Mask is to protect _me_, don't you? And now--now that I'm in such danger of being arrested and everything again, you're going to walk away from _them _but still protect _me_. You'll just be protecting me from all of them now."

He grinned. "That sounds about right, yes."

"_You idiot!" _She hissed, leaning up and punching his shoulder in one solid move. "You stupid, stupid man! You are _not _allowed to get hurt on my account! Especially with thoughts like that running through your head!"

He frowned, rubbing his shoulder surly. "You sure are feeling better, aren't you? You just can't stop hitting me." _'I knew I should have made her promise not to do that anymore after she hit me for drawing that dog on Hotaru's cast. Really. I don't see what the big deal was. She likes bunnies and drew one. I like dogs and drew one.'_

"Be serious!" She snarled, reaching over to hit Darien's shoulder again. She scowled as he caught her hand on its return. "Let go! You--you are not going to die because of me, do you understand? You are not going to _die_." She stopped, choking on air as the image returned once again. A sword being plunged into his chest with no mercy over and over again. Red blood seeping everywhere; it was becoming a sinister river that would take him away.

Darien sighed as the girl broke down into unintelligible words interrupted by gasps and sniffles. "Odango, calm down, _please_. Trust me. I know what I'm doing."

"Being… being an idiot!" She gasped out after a bit. Why was that scene was _vivid_; why did it feel like she had watched that happen _before_? "I--I don't want you go get hurt, let alone _die_, on my account!" She whispered, sniffling a few times as tears created paths on her face.

He pulled Serena's hand closer, trying to grab her attention. "You really have no faith in me, do you?" He couldn't help but ask sadly.

"N--no." She gasped, shaking her head vehemently. "I--I _do_! You know that!"

He smiled softly, relieved, and dropped her hand. "Then stop saying I am going to die, already. I will not let the Senshi or the Princess get to me. Or _you_, for that matter. For however long I've been Tuxedo Mask, I never thought the Senshi would turn again one of their own teammates like this. I expected it to happen to _me _because of how secretive I was but _never _to you. If they want you, they'll have to get through me first. I'll gladly give all of them a fight to make sure they won't get a hold of you again." _'The damned first time should never have happened even.'_

Serena looked at him dubiously, even as something she couldn't describe fluttered in her heart at his words. She still didn't understand the reason for his deadly serious words, probably never would, but she couldn't help but be thankful for them all the same. "T--thank you, Darien. …You are an idiot but I appreciate the concern."

He laughed quietly, reaching over to wipe some of the Serena's tears off. "_You _are going to kill me with these tears, you know. I thought we established how I don't like so many of them."

She gave a half-giggle, half-sob. "I can't help it. I just… I don't know what to do anymore. Everything is different and I-- I don't feel like _me _anymore." She sniffed a few times and looked up at him. "What am I going to do now that I'm not a Senshi?"

"You live, Serena." He replied solemnly as he dropped his hand. "You go back to being a normal, sixteen year old girl."

"I _can't _do that. I've seen things that normal sixteen year olds should _never _see in their lifetimes." She looked at him despairingly. "What about _you_? Can you just go back to being a normal eighteen year old if you're not going to fight with the Senshi anymore?"

"Wasn't it just yesterday that you said that you thought I was the type of person you were protecting?" He asked quietly. "I think we're in agreement when I say neither of us are normal -powers or not- but we can still continue to live life, Serena, just like we _always _have. It's just that we won't have a night job to get in the way now. Let the Senshi, _--'no matter how corrupted they seemingly are'_, he added mentally-- be the ones to defend the city now. You and I are going to be _civilians _for a while."

"But… I don't think I can." She whispered, her chin trembling. "It's been so long since I've been just a simple person. I'm used to having to make lies and telling half truths; disappearing at the slightest notice and breaking plans; walking home in the dead of night and hiding bruises I can never explain to my parents… _That _is my life, it has been for months."

"No." He shook his head lightly. "That's only been _part _of your life. You've been Odango all along too. You go to school, play video games, you spend time with friends and family: you've been _living_. I have faith in you, Serena. You'll never forget what you've seen and done but that doesn't mean you can't go back to a normal life."

"I--I don't know… I guess that's all true but… "

He gave a slight smile. "You're not going to be all alone in this, all right? I'm going to be there pestering you just like I always have."

She giggled quietly. "All right… but, Darien, you _still _have your powers. What are you going to do about those, just let them go to waste?"

He looked at her curiously, a distant look in his eyes. "No. My powers… they aren't the same as the Senshis'. They never have been. I've had them long before I was Tuxedo Mask and I'm positive I'll still have them even if I completely give up that identity."

Serena blinked. "What do you mean?"

"My powers didn't just appear when I became Tuxedo Mask, Serena. I've have them since I was little." He said seriously, looking down at his fingers as he flexed them. "The flowers, the healing, if not everything else too. I never understood them and was so _terrified _of someone discovering these strange, unexplainable abilities I had that I hardly used them. When I become Tuxedo Mask, I wondered if that's what I always had them for. In any case they finally had a purpose."

"And yet you're just going to walk away. For me." Serena whispered sadly. "How can you do that? Even if you're not giving up on being Tuxedo Mask, we both know that it won't be the same. What purpose are they going to have if you don't use them to defeat the Dark Kingdom with the Senshi?"

He looked up, his eyes considering. "Maybe being Tuxedo Mask was only _part _of the reason I have my powers. If it was solely for that reason, they would have appeared during that first battle, but they didn't."

"You are very hypocritical." She growled. "First you think being Tuxedo Mask is the reason why you have your powers and now you think that its only part of the reason. Decide already, will you!? What else is there?"

"Did my ears deceive me? _Hypocritical_? I think I underestimated you, Odango." He shook his head wryly, a grin on his face, but she only narrowed her eyes dangerously. He groaned, leaning back in his chair. "I don't know and I might never know. I'll just have to do what I think is best. And as for my powers going to waste…" He shrugged, "It'll just go back to the way it used to be. Only using my powers when I need them."

The blonde pursed her lips, still unhappy but slowly beginning to accept everything. It truly _was _like yesterday all over again. Yet instead of blaming herself for Makoto's death, she was blaming herself for Darien's probable death. "Like when?"

He shrugged lightly again. "Like when I need to save your not-used-to-Earth-gravity's self or when I healed you yesterday…" He trailed off and seconds later he was handing a rose to the girl. "Let's not forget when you need a flower, too." He grinned as she took it with a small giggle. "See? They're not going to go to waste. I'll make a use for them."

She shook her head as she placed the rose with the others that still sat in their vase on her nightstand. "I think you should be prepared to have a lot of flowers on hand if you're going to use them for that then."

"No problem." He smiled. "I have an endless supply."

Serena's lips twitched before she bowed her head. "I still expect an answer to my question, you know. You can't sidetrack me. Do you hate the Senshi now?" She looked up, seeing he was opening his mouth, so she quickly cut him off. "Saying I'm your favorite isn't answering. And flattery gets you nowhere."

"Who says I wanted to get anywhere?" He grinned, "And if you are asking this because you are afraid I hate Ami, I _don't_. I listened to what she said, Serena, and I heard how sorry she was. She told you that she would do anything to get you out of this situation and I believe her. I am grateful to her, and Makoto for that matter, for standing beside you when the others didn't. Even Minako I suppose, in her own warped way of doing things, tried to help you. I cannot say that I am as grateful to her as I am to Ami and Makoto though. Not by any means."

Serena looked up cautiously. "What… what about Rei and Luna? How do you feel about them?"

He met her eyes steadily and she couldn't help but gasp at the dark emotion lurking in his eyes. "I refuse to tell you. You shouldn't know of those thoughts."

Serena winced, involuntarily shivering at the rage that had crept into his voice. "Why are you doing this? What is so important about me that you would walk away from what you've done for months without a thought?"

"Because you're Serena, Odango." He smirked as she gave him a small watery glare at his nickname; the usual Serena was lurking just under the surface now. Soon enough she would stop blaming herself for everything that was happening lately, he would make sure of it. "That is what is so important about you. You're yourself and you should continue to be. That's _why _I'm doing this."

Her brow furrowed in reply. "I'm not sure I know what you mean."

"I'm sure you'll understand eventually. Think about it."

"I don't want to think about it!" She complained irritably. "I want you to _tell _me what's so special about me; about Sailor Moon even! Why did you say I was the reason you went to battles lately? Even in that first month when it was just me, why did you stay when you didn't have to?"

He ran a frustrated hand through his hair. "You called me. That's why I stayed when it was just the two of us."

"_**Called **_you? _That's _the reason you come to the battles?" She asked disbelievingly and a little hurt. _'So it wasn't his choice to stay after all. I called him and he saw how pathetic I was…'_

"No, Serena. Stop it." He said, seeing the look on her face. "_My _choice, remember? I _wanted _to save you; you did not force me to stay. Besides, you only truly called me that first battle." He tapped his chest, "I felt it in here. You were scared, petrified even. I…" He shook his head. "I don't know how to describe it. All I know is one minute I was at home and the next I was jumping off rooftops. I could feel _you _and knew you were all alone. From that battle onward, I felt all your transformation and, more often than not, your emotions. I _wanted _to help you and that's why I _continued _to go to the battles and save you. I felt every time you transformed and then I was on my way to the battle."

She blinked a few times, startled. "You could _feel _me transform? I always knew when and where you were at the battles because I could sense your presence."

He shook his head in wonder. "Well, that certainly explains why it always seemed like you were looking at the tree I was hiding in. It's still kind of unexpected though."

She gave him a dry look. "Everything today has been unexpected. Despite all the threats I never thought my powers and everything else would be _striped _from me like it was. And I certainly never thought that Luna would be a _human _or that the Moon Princess would finally show up out of nowhere."

Darien winced, deciding it was finally time to break down and admit what he knew about this not-so-mythical princess. It was a wonder she hadn't already questioned why he wasn't surprised to know a Princess of the Moon existed. "Serena…" He began but stopped, deciding that someone up there truly hated Odango as distinct sounds lifted up and through the open window.

"_Mercury!" Mars's voice echoed loudly, an inhuman screech sounding immediately after. "Have you found that damned weak spot yet!?" The voice continued, barely heard over the now-continuous screeches._

"_I'm working on it! Just stop leading the youma in that direction! We need to keep it away from the hospital!" Came the quick, preoccupied voice._

_An entirely human scream echoed in the air moments later. "Damn it, Mars! I am _not _a youma! Try not to singe my hair off, will you!? I'd prefer not being bald when I wake up tomorrow!"_

"_Stuff it, Venus! At least I'm going something. Your lazy butt is just standing around watching!" _

"_Oh, please--!"_

"_Girls, stop it!" Mercury cried, irritation and worry obvious in her voice. "Get the youma away from the parking lot! We can't have it endangering the hospital and all its occupants!"_

Serena wasn't sure if she should be crying or laughing but seconds later it was decided for her. Darien swore under his breath as his companion once again broke down into sobs, burying her face into the side of her pillow. With quick, agitated movements he walked over to the window and looked out. The three remaining Senshi were not even a block away battling a gray youma that, if he squinted, looked to be shaped like a hammer. And they were not fairing well in the least.

Instead, without Sailor Moon or Jupiter, it seemed the remaining three were more agitated than ever with each other. They continued to yell at one another, half-ignoring the monster as it threw foot long nails into anything it ran across. He winced as one of the nails jam straight through the roof of a black and white sports car. _'Maybe this will make the Senshi realize just how essential Serena's influence was. __**Is**__.'_

"Are you going to leave still?" Came a muffled, but obviously sorrowful, voice. Darien froze in the process of lifting his hands up, only hearing acceptance in Serena's voice. "I won't blame you or stop you, even. Just… just promise you won't get hurt, all right?"

He sighed as he looked over his shoulder to see the girl burying her head further into her pillow. A dark frown crossed his lips as he looked back out the window for the briefest of seconds before closing it and drawing the curtains shut. He silently debated for a moment before cautiously walking to Serena and lowering the bed railing on her right side.

"W-what are you doing?" She whispered as she turned over, eyeing him as he toed his shoes off.

He grinned at her bemused expression. "Scoot." She looked at him blankly so he rolled his eyes. "Do you really want to waste another of these once-in-a-lifetime opportunity things? I'm offering you a shoulder to cry on." Her brow furrowed but she still said nothing. "All right then…_One_... The offer is leaving fast… _Two_.… all right then. _Thr_--" The blonde panicked and pulled on Darien's arm, almost tumbling him down into her bed. He laughed as she quickly sat up and moved around, trying to make room for him. "The things I do for you, Odango…"

She laughed, though it still sounded suspiciously like a sob to Darien. "Don't… b-be _mean_, jerk."

He shook his head as he crawled onto the bed, carefully avoiding the blonde's pointy elbows. He'd been on the wrong side of them before and it wasn't something he wanted to repeat in such a confined space. He winced as a knee hit his stomach instead. "Jeez… Watch it, will you?"

She giggled, waiting for him to fully lay out his large frame on the bed. "Are you comfortable?" She whispered as she hesitantly leaned against his side, unable to do much else without running into the railing at her back.

Darien sighed but there was an amused smile on his face as he looked at her. "As much as I could be with an Odango lying on my arm and half my side. Especially one with so much hair."

She scowled and thumped his chest amidst his chuckles. "Just be lucky my hair's braided, jerk. Otherwise we'd be in some trouble."

His smiled widened, eyes dancing with mirth. "Oh, yeah. It'd probably come alive and strangle me. That's something I would expect from an extension of you. I can hear the headlines now _'Man mysterious strangled by hair. Suspect insists he provoked it purposely. More at ten…'"_

"What did I tell you about being mean?" She growled, completely forgetting her shyness as she laid her head on his shoulder. Darien only continued to laugh so she reached down to pinch his forearm, earning her a half-hearted "ouch" before he went on laughing louder.

"I'm just trying to make you feel better." He chuckled as he brought his arm around her waist to gently tug on the hair hanging there. "Why else would you think I was lying here in a very cramped bed with a girl that abuses me?"

She giggled and looked up at him. She smiled, her cheeks turning red as she realized just how close his face was to hers. "Thanks for everything, Darien. It means a lot of me that you still believe in me."

He sighed and tapped her nose, forcing her to go crossed eyed this time from the shorter distance. "No problem. I just want to prove that you're not alone. I'm sticking with you, despite what the truth is or what else happens. Even if no one else will."

She grinned and playfully batted his hand away from her nose. "Thanks, jerk." She whispered as she nuzzled herself deeper into his shirt. _'He smells just like roses… All those flowers must leave their smell on him.'_

"Are you sniffing me?" Darien asked incredulously a minute later.

She 'eeped' and flushed a deep red. "N-_no_." He laughed, making her bury her face into the soft material covering his shoulder in sheer mortification. "You smell like roses. I _like _roses." She explained quietly, hoping he would let her be and dropped the subject.

He didn't. "Well, I guess you did tell Ami that I wasn't smelly. I'll just take it as a compliment."

"It's a wonder you _don't _smell," She countered as she lifted her head up slightly, her eyes narrowed accusingly, "considering that you're practically living here."

"I am _not _practically living here. I _did _go to school today for your information." He growled, the slightest hint of red spreading across his nose. _'It's not my fault I feel so damned paranoid now. How am I supposed to keep my promise to Odango and protect her if I leave all the time? For all I know, once I do, Rei and the others will come and Mrs. Tsukino will let them in. Thinking they're only here for a "nice little chat".'_

"Yet when I got back," Serena continued with a grin, "you were already here reading to Hotaru. Not that I blame you. I know you like visiting with her too." She paled suddenly, her expression becoming guilty, and hurriedly looked over at the girl's bed. Luckily Hotaru didn't look like she'd woken up at all, despite how loud the others in the room had gotten. "Whoa. I think she sleeps deeper than I do."

"Now _that's _a wonder." Darien teased, glad that his visits weren't being scrutinized anymore, "Did you know you slept through your mother yelling at me? I think that's what worried me the most. I'd have figured you would have jumped up, claiming didn't do something but you kept on sleeping."

"She _yelled _at you?" Serena asked incredulously, wondering how her (usually) sweet mother would ever yell at Darien. _'Isn't he like the poster child for a perfect son or something? Good grades, dedicated, usually respectable, etc.?'_ "Are you sure that you're not confusing her with my dad?"

He smirked. "I'm positive. She yelled at me Saturday morning. Your father was actually the one who allowed Motoki and myself to stay in the room when the doctor diagnosed you. I was wondering if all those homicidal overprotective stories of him were true when that happened. It was very… strange."

"They're mostly over exaggerated," She answered absently, "but there's a bit of truth to them. The day after I turned fourteen, a senior came to my house to ask me out. My dad gave him a flat out no, saying that no daughter of his was going to date until she was married." She giggled. "The guy kept asking over and over though, saying he deserved a chance, and my dad got mad after a while. He ended up having to chase the guy down the street just to get him off the front steps. And, well, he'd been helping my mom cook dinner so he had had a knife in his hand at the time. He never did anything with it, or even catch the guy and let alone hurt him, but the rumors of homicidal psycho Kenji Tsukino still got started."

"Hmm. Figures. Just trying to protect his daughter." Darien muttered before shaking his head in amusement. "So you can't date until you're married? I'd love to see how that works."

She snorted. "I'll tell you when it happens." Both were quiet for some time before Serena finally broke down and asked the question bogging down on her. "…What do you think is happening out there?"

He sighed at her whisper, turning his head toward the ceiling. He could still hear the Senshis' distinct battle cries but they were a little more than muffled now that the window was closed. "They're winning, Serena. I have no doubts."

"Because they have the Princess to fight for now?" She mumbled as she turned her head slightly, her mouth moving against the man's shoulders with each word.

"The Princess means nothing." She gasped in shock, looking up but he had his eyes closed in thought. "They're fighting because they want revenge for what happened to Jupiter. As for Mercury, I'm positive she is fighting her hardest so she can defeat the youma faster." He gave a little smirk and opened his eyes to look down at her. "The faster it's destroyed, the more likely it is you won't appear and break your promise."

She narrowed her eyes menacingly. "You just can't stop being mean, can you?"

"Well, you're not crying are you?" He retorted easily with a teasing grin. "When we're arguing, it means things are going back to normal."

She thought about it for a minute before nodding, a soft smile on her face. "You're right. I guess it is a good thing you're so mean and teasing, huh?"

He frowned. "You're _thanking _me for being _mean_? What in the world are the nurses giving you, Odango?"

"I've been wondering that myself." She joked but after a minute a shuttering breath overtook her as the battle continued to echo in her ears. "…I don't know if I can do this, Darien. It's so hard just to listen and not run outside and help."

He winced as she sniffed a few times. "Come on. Focus on something else, Odango. What are you going to do when you're granted your freedom? Are you going to replace my ruined and very bloodstained green jacket?"

"No." She sniffled a few more times. "I'm going to mourn the loss of my purse."

"_Eh?"_ He blinked in confusion, looking down at the girl oddly. _'What kind of answer is that? She was supposed to yell and say it was my fault for wrapping the jacket around her in the first place. Or, more likely, say that that thing finally got what it deserved.'_

She sniffed as she lifted up her watery eyes to met his. "My subspace pocket was the best hiding place. I could place anything in there and never lose it. Everything would always be there when I needed it. It was a limitless purse that I never had to carry."

He looked at her for another moment. "…You can share mind if you'd like. I don't mind." He finally said, still a bit baffled.

She gasped, her eyes shiny with emotion. "Really?"

He rose a curious eyebrow. "Sure, Odango. I won't have said it if I didn't mean it."

"T-thank you." She stuttered before abruptly burying her face into his neck. Darien's brow furrowed as he felt her hot tears on his skin, her hands moving up at desperately clutching his shirt seconds later. _'Why would you cry over a lost subspace pocket like this? Sure it can be helpful but not so much that you would mourn its loss this badly. Or…'_ He sighed as understanding dawned on him. _'Or it isn't about the actual subspace pocket at all but more of what it represented. She only had Ami's word that she was no longer a Senshi until she tried her slipping into her subspace pocket. When she couldn't access it, that was undeniable proof she was no longer a Senshi…'_

Carefully the man wrapped his arm around the girl's shoulders and pulled her closer, lying his head on top of hers. "It's all right, Serena. We'll get through this."

"Together." She whispered with a slow nod before pressing herself deeper into his arms, welcoming the comforting embrace and smell of roses.

He smiled, staring over at Hotaru absently. She was amazingly still deeply asleep, her breaths even and calm. When he'd arrived at lunch, she had just woken up and he'd seen the haunted look in her eyes. It was actually what prompted him to read to her in the first place. Nightmares were not strangers to either of them but tonight Hotaru was sleeping peacefully. He wondered if he would as well. "Hey Serena," He murmured after a while, "can I ask you something?"

"Yeah." She whispered back, her voice rough with the approach of sleep.

"Who is Endymion?" He blinked in surprise. The question had been bothering him for days, he would not deny that, but never expected he would actually ask. Especially when even Motoki wouldn't give him an answer. At least one besides his cryptic "someone important". Like _that _was helpful.

Unknowingly to both people, a soft smile appeared on Serena's lips as she closed her eyes. "Safety," She whispered, her voice thick with a mixture of a foreign accent and sleep, "Endymion always keeps me safe."

She feel asleep then, not noticing how Darien's smiled, his eyes flashing gold in the rapidly darkening room. "You always protect me as well, a stór." He whispered, brushing the girl's bangs out of her eyes. "For Endymion shall protect Serenity as fiercely as she does him. That is indeed why we are here now, is it not?"

Endymion frowned, still mystified as to _how _he was existing despite everything that had happened. It truly felt as if he was a separate entity in his reincarnation's mind, at least as of late. He could neither move nor communicate with Darien (he was positive the man did not know of his existence, even) yet he _could _listen to what was occurring around him. Conversations, mostly, though he had also been favored with the periodic thought or memory that would slip through. At first they had been nothing more than nuisances but as time went on, he began to eagerly absorb everything in hopes they would tell him of the events on Terra.

And he was happy with none of what he had learned.

Endymion frowned as he brushed Serena's bangs out of her eyes. _'Perhaps,' _he amended himself, _'I am… content with one aspect. It is very fortunate that my reincarnation is protective of this girl.'_ He smiled gently as Serena nuzzled closer to him, _'I have heard some of his thoughts, a stór. Your Darien has become cognizant of the fact he may have lost you many a time and never understood why. If he -__**we**__- had ever failed as this Tuxedo Mask and you should have perished…' _He sighed, shaking his head lightly, before a wry smile played on his lips. _'I believe you shall gain a larger shadow in the upcoming days. Darien is truly worried about what shall happen to you. We are in agreement as well. You did not simply frighten him when you fainted, Serenity. You gave me a fright as well. As such, you must remain protected until I --__**we**__, this reincarnation and I-- understand why everything is as such.'_

He grinned as Serena murmured his reincarnation's name sleepily and nuzzled his neck. Should the fates be sympathetic, perhaps the two may be brought together in the midst of all this chaos. "Sleep, Serena," He whispered to the girl, "and dream of the woman you shall become. Darien and I will be watching over you and ensuring no harm comes to pass."

His smile saddened slightly before the gold in his eyes pulsed once before fading back into a dark blue reminiscent of the Earth's oceans. Darien blinked a few times and had to grin in amusement as all he saw was Serena's blonde hair. "Sleep well, Odango." He muttered, closing his eyes again and letting his head drop back onto hers.

* * *

Finished: November 5th 2008, 10 PM.

Posted: Nov. 6th 1:20-ish AM

Whoo! Finished and it was super long for the seemingly long wait. I honestly meant to get it out before Halloween but stuff got in the way. Like it always seems to.

Hehe, loved the last scene with Endy/Sere/Dare. It was cute, to me at least. This chapter just needed to end on a happier note because of all the angst in it. Much like the last chapter was. And for all of you who are wondering what the others are up to, that will come in the next chapter. A good chunk of it is already done as well, so hopefully it will come within a few weeks time. _Hopefully._

Hope you enjoyed; questions and reviews are more than welcome. As always.

Tiger Celeste.


	23. Chapter 23

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with. In addition, I do not own "X-Men" or the individual character Charles Xavier.

Has it been a long time since I updated? It seems like it has but I suppose that's what holidays do for you, lol. HAPPY HOLIDAYS, EVERYONE!

**TabbyKit:** I responded to your PM, but you never replied. Please tell me if you received it or not so I may send a copy. If not, then I hope that means all your questions are cleared up.

**Tenshi-Chikyuu**: --sweat drop-- Honestly it never even occurred to me to have Endymion wake Serena up, so let's just say he never thought of it either, okay? Lol, that would have made it so unbelievably complicated but easy at the same time… Maybe it's a good thing I never thought it of. Also, _**a stór **_is Irish for "my love" , "my treasure", it's a term of endearment in any way.

**Ally0212**: The beginning was my ehh… part too, it was just so slow. Everyone seemed to like it though, so I don't think I'll go in and rewrite it. Anyways, I don't usually tend to read many fanfics but I do understand your frustration with stories that aren't completed. I have the exact same feelings in regard to them so I am completely determined to finish this. One way or another, it will get done. And for the other's reactions to what they've been doing to Serena… well, I guess we'll have to wait and see won't we? --Grin-- Hopefully I won't let you or anyone else down with how it turns out. Whichever way it does.

**Valkyrie Celes**: I agree with you: Sailor Moon just isn't the same _without _Sailor Moon. Though… as for Moon being reborn when she's needed, I honestly don't know at this point in the story. It could go either way. (Serena's powers being stripped away was a **HUGE** surprise to me when it wrote itself out so I kind of got thrown into a loop.)

Well, I'm glad that you guys seemed to enjoy how good of a friend Ami is to Serena. She has completely loyal devotion to Serena but her duty gets in the way of that. I always thought that if Serena wasn't the princess in the series, Ami would have had a similar struggle. So I added it here for me. And I'm glad everyone like Endy/Dare/Sere's scene: it was cute! And for those of you who want Endymion to pop up more… Have fun with this chapter. It's time to learn just what happened that night Serena was admitted to the hospital. (Can we say split personality?)

Enjoy the chapter! (Hope you will all be surprised with the very last scene).

* * *

Grandpa Hino frowned as he watched Rei in front of their home. She was standing in the middle of the temple grounds, dressed in her Shinto priestess garbs and holding a broom in one hand. Usually this was a common sight as one of her chores was sweeping the grounds every morning. Yet this morning she was using her broom to try to swat away Phobos and Deimos, the crows of whom used to be her favorite companions. But perhaps the worst thing of all was that both crows were cawing and squawking more than Grandpa had ever heard them do so before, even when that dreadful youma attacked their home so many months ago. They sensed an evil presence and they were attacking _Rei_, of all people. _'Something is wrong. Terribly wrong.'_

"Granddaughter!" He called, stepping down to the bottom of the steps, "Have you seen Chad?"

Rei took another minute to swat at a crow, earning herself a handful of enraged caws as she made contact. "No, Grandfather! He's probably sleeping still!" she huffed, not even bothering to look at the elder.

The priest's frown deepened, yet he still called out a "I will go look. Finish with your chores!" that had the girl waving a careless hand before heaving up her broom and attacking the crows with renewed vigor. Grandpa scratched his bald head as he walked back into the house and slid the door closed behind him. _'It is just as I feared, Rei has a terrible darkness in her. She is slowly becoming consumed by something.'_

He paused in the living room, looking around at the clean _empty _room. When he had gotten a glass of water around one o'clock this morning, Rei and an unfamiliar dark-haired woman had been slumbering in two sleeping bags. He'd been on the verge of waking his granddaughter to question her sleeping arrangements when something had made him stop and look in on her bedroom. He hadn't known what he expected, perhaps those crazy friends of Rei's that were prone to staying in her room for hours on end, but instead he'd seen an oddly silver-haired unfamiliar woman sleeping utterly still in the bed. He'd almost thought she had not been breathing for all her stillness but when he'd hesitantly edged closer, he'd seen the small breaths taken. _'But something was still wrong with her; she did not feel like any person I've ever met. If I didn't know better, I would say she wasn't real. Merely a shell.'_

In any case the living room had been empty and straightened up by the time he'd woken at four o'clock to meditate. He knew the two unfamiliar women had been in Rei's room because he'd heard soft mumbling but instead of going in and asking questions, he had decided to stay oblivious. Just like he had been for the past few months about everything that had been taking place between his granddaughter and her friends.

Grandpa shook his head slowly, walking down the hall that lead to the Great Fire's room. As he walked, he passed by Chad's room and was suddenly overcome with an urge to see the room for himself. Peeking in, he saw the room was abandoned; no clothes, none of those strange posters of musicians with crazy hair, no guitar, or anything else. A completely bare room save for a low bed and a dresser. _'So I am not going crazy. Chad really left almost a week ago. Shortly after we returned from that priest convention.'_

Chad had gone with Grandpa Hino, saying he seriously considered giving up on the music career he'd always spoke so passionately about to become a Shinto priest instead. He'd claimed that it was because he had grown to respect the religion and the dedication and hard work it took to be a Shinto Priest but Grandpa knew the truth. The man had hoped that by proving he would give up his lifelong dreams and dedicate his life to the religion, he would have Rei's respect. Love even.

It had been a noble gesture but Rei hadn't taken notice of it; not even when Chad had given his speech about becoming a priest while she was present. Even when they'd returned and Chad was dressed in traditional garbs and his hair cut more respectably, Rei hadn't listened or paid attention. For two days the man had done every single one of his chores and duties perfectly, used more manners than he'd ever used in the whole four months he'd stayed at the shrine, and had forced back that natural "surfer" tone of his. He even went so far as to use the most respectable Japanese he knew, a far cry from his usual informal words and slang.

All of it had been in an effort to impress Rei but she hadn't noticed any of his efforts then and she hadn't even noticed he'd been gone for days now. Grandpa knew that was why Chad had stolen away in the morning twilight with his knapsack and guitar, leaving only a letter to _him _-not Rei- as an explanation that he couldn't give up on his dreams, let alone stay at the shrine any longer despite how much he'd grown to care for everyone and everything. It wasn't worth the heartache when the woman he loved couldn't see him. Not as a friend, not as a love, she simply couldn't _see _him.

'_I truly feel sorry for that boy. If only he could have met Rei sooner.'_ Grandpa Hino thought as he looked around the room before sliding the door shut slowly. Chad truly loved Rei with everything in him and had hoped to offer her the best life she could want at the shrine or wherever else she went in the future. But it hadn't been enough, not since she began to keep that secret of hers.

Yes, Grandpa knew Rei held a secret. Of what he did not know but he did know she held one and that it was grave. Months ago, when she suddenly began coming home with mysterious bruises and cuts that she would explain as _accidents_, he'd thought that this secret was a danger to her health. Now he knew better; her body healed, the bruises and other "accidents" fading away in days. No, the true danger was to her soul and as time went on it was slowly gaining a black spot.

What frustrated the elderly priest was that he couldn't figure out _what _exactly was wrong with his granddaughter. He suspected whatever ailed her was related to the youma that had attacked the shrine three and a half months ago. The day after was when Rei's strange behavior and the "accidents" began and since then he had noticed oddities about his granddaughter.

Like her dwindling connection to the Sacred Fire. He suspected that Rei hadn't had a true vision in two months and for him to even think such a thing was the largest telling sign of the darkness in her. There was a distance between the Sacred Fire and Rei that had never been there before and he knew that the Fire would never turn away from her unless there was a reason. It could not be her powers, he realized almost a month ago, because she seemed to be more in tune with them than ever. Her ofudo was exceptionally strong and he had heard girls praising the trinkets that Rei made; their wishes for boyfriends, good grades, money, or a healthy family member had mostly come true for them.

No. The Sacred Fire was shutting Rei out for another reason. And that reason was the exact same as why he could still hear Phobos and Deimos squawking and cawing and her frustrated shouts as she missed them with her broom, why she'd steadily been gaining strange friends who stayed in her room for hours on end, why she always seemed to be gone now, why she would become irritated and angry over nothing, why she'd begun calling him "Grandfather" and not "Grandpa" or "Old man" like she used to, and why she was so blinded she could not see what was in front of her.

The old priest breathed in deeply as he knelt in front of the Sacred Fire. He had to learn what was happening to Rei before she was completely consumed and her soul was corrupted more than it already was. It was time to stop being so oblivious because that was the only way he could save Rei.

"Sacred Fire." He pleaded quietly, his hands forming the prayer position absently. "Please. Show me what ails my granddaughter. Show me what troubles her mind, heart, and soul…"

* * *

Motoki frowned as he flipped through the medical chart in his hand. It was pure luck that the nurse had left it on her cart as she went room from room asking if anyone needed anything. He couldn't help but take advantage of the gift before him, even if stealing it was wrong. His frown deepened suddenly as he spotted a notation from a Doctor Rupert. _'Patient shows similarities to another that was present at the hospital twelve years ago. Curiously enough, both patients know one another.'_

The blonde's brow crinkled in confusion as he stared at the message. _'Who in the world is similar to Serena? Someone who knows her and would have been here twelve years ago.'_ He stopped, his eyes flaring open in shock as he remembered something.

"_**My parents… they died a little over a decade ago in a car crash. I was in the car too but somehow managed to survive. I had amnesia and ended up being sent from one hospital to another for months afterwards."**_

Motoki ran a frustrated hand through his hair as Darien's voice echoed in his head. It was no secret how private the man was but last year he had finally admitted his parents had died in a car crash when he was younger. That single statement, in addition to an offhanded one when he'd said he had grown up in a few orphanages, had been all that he had ever said about his childhood and Motoki had no doubts that is all he would say. Despite being friends, Darien simply did not delve into his past willingly with him.

"What did they do to you, Darien?" The man wondered out loud before freezing as he heard a rattling from the hallway. He swore under his breath and quickly ducked further down behind a mountain of linen that he was hiding behind. _'Please don't come in here. Please tell me that you don't need anything in the utility closet.'_ He pleaded to the figure as the door handle rattled ominously.

"NURSE!? WHERE IS MY BREAKFAST?"

Motoki winced for the nurse's sake but couldn't help but silently thank the obnoxious patient as the door handle stopped jiggling and the shadow disappeared from the small, covered window. _'Come on, don't dawdle.'_ He reprimanded himself before flipping through Serena's chart more urgently. He needed to read as much as he possibly could before that nurse finally noticed one of the charts was missing. _'Unknown agent… Blood steam possibly infected… Curious unknown… Testing will determine… Ugh, do these doctors no nothing?'_ He groaned as he saw the same messages over and over, the same theories and beliefs. _'No one knows what this thing in her blood is. Now am __**I **__supposed to figure out what it is?'_ He closed the chart softly before irritably kneading his forehead with his free hand and standing up.

Within five minutes he was in front of Serena's room after successfully managing to sneak his way out of the utility closet and return the chart without a single soul none the wiser. Yet, even with his stealth and the training that came with it, he couldn't figure out his next move and where it would take him. _'I suppose I could actually visit Serena this time.'_

He paused at the thought, wondering if he was ready to face the girl. He _had _continually been visiting Serena but had also made sure that every time he visited she was already asleep or out of the room. _'She's going to hate me if I don't go visit her soon.'_ Though he supposed he couldn't blame her if she did; he was being very cowardice in his avoidance of her.

"Come on, Cadeyrn." he mumbled to himself as he spun around to face the door. "What are you? A warrior-prince or a mouse?" _'I do like cheese…'_ He glowered at his thoughts and firmly pushed the door open. _'Time to face the facts.'_ Immediately on the door opening, he spotted Serena with her face buried in an unfamiliar pink manga book and an unconscious smile lifted up his glower. _'Cousin…' _

_**

* * *

**_

"_Cadeyrn! Come in, come in!" The loud male voice boomed out happily. "There is someone I would like to present to you!"_

'_**Uncle **__**Sulwyn(1) looks happier than normal.'**__ The four-year old boy thought. The king had a beaming smile, looking down in a small bed with an awed expression on his face. Curious as to what could make his imposing uncle look so soft, the boy walked closer until the other person in the room caught his attention. He froze at seeing Queen Selenity before quickly bowing like his father had taught him to._

'_**Uh-oh.' **__he thought as he saw spotted the dried mud on the bottom of his black trousers. __**'Now I'm not presen-table like Daddy said I should be.'**__ He winced, frantically wiping off the bottom of his legs and hoping the elegant woman hadn't noticed._

"_You don't bow to kin, boy!" Uncle __Sulwyn boomed cheerily and the next thing Cadeyrn knew he was being hovered over the small bed. "Now that you're finally here, my boy, met your cousin. This is Princess Serenity."_

_It was a girl in the bed. A small, slightly pink skinned baby with a tuft of blonde hair and dressed in a white sleeping-gown. The boy frowned as he saw the moon mark on her forehead, one just like Queen Selenity had. __**'She looks wrinkly.'**__ he grumbled to himself before the baby opened her eyes and he found himself pinned by blue._

"_Áine!" he whispered in amazement. "Áine's eyes…"_

_Sulwyn laughed heartedly as he placed his nephew back on the ground and knelt beside him. "That's right. Serenity has clear blue eyes just like your sister. They get them from your Grandfather, a true Solarian trait!"_

"_Cousin." Cadeyrn mumbled as he reached into the girl's bed. She gazed at him curiously, her face scrunched up slightly, before she smiled toothlessly and grabbed the finger reaching toward her. The boy grinned. "Serenity…"_

_**-------------------------------------------------------------------------**_

"_Kahdy!" A female voice yelled happily before Cadeyrn suddenly found a six-year old girl hugging his thighs. A very familiar girl who looked like she had snuck off to the sea if the sand on the bottom of her dress meant anything._

"_Serenity." The bow growled, an embarrassed red creeping up in his cheeks despite the fact he and his cousin were alone. "My name is Kahd-uh-ryn. Cadeyrn. Not _Kahdy_."_

"_Ka-Kahdy…" The girl mumbled, her eyes going watery at her elder cousin's tone. She sniffled a few times as she looked up at him pleadingly. "Do--do you hate me?"_

"_No! Of course not!" The ten-year old whispered, his eyes becoming panicked. "Don't cry Serenity… You--you may call me Kahdy." He grumbled as he knelt down in front of the small girl and tried to pat the top of her head reassuringly._

_She backed away instead as tears began to leak from her eyes. As she shook her head frantically, strands from the orbs of the Lunarian royal hairstyle began to tumble out. "No. Kahdy…" She shook her head again, a wobble in her chin. "No. …Cadeyrn __**hates **__me."_

"_I could never hate you." The boy whispered before sighing. "You are like another sister to me."_

_The girl's eyes got big as she edged toward her cousin hopefully, her voice barely above a whisper. "Truly? Cadeyrn not hate me?"_

"_No." The golden-haired boy chuckled as he opened his arms invitingly, a large grin on his face. "__**Kahdy **__loves you, Serenity."_

_The little princess giggled, stumbling forward and jumping onto her cousin's stomach. "Kahdy…"_

_**-------------------------------------------------------**_

"_Welcome to Lunaria, Prince Cadeyrn of Sol. Forgive me for missing your arrival and that of the other Solarian delegates earlier this morning."_

_Cadeyrn quickly hid a confused frown as he knelt down to kiss his cousin's offered hand. "It is an honor to receive such a welcome as one from you, Crown Princess Serenity. Despite the time it is delivered." He replied as he straightened up with a polite smile. "I look forward to hearing your words of wisdom during this Conference."_

_The seventeen-year old princess curtseyed slightly and Cadeyrn had to fight to keep the unfitting grin off his face as he saw how her tiara wobbled dangerously at the movement. Immediately Serenity paled, no doubt feeling the ornament move, before straightening with a smile. "I am flattered, Prince Cadeyrn, however I am afraid that I will not be taking part in the Conference. I have other duties to attend."_

'_**What could possibly be more important than talks such as this? And why is your smile touched with sadness?'**__ He wanted to say out loud but knew better than to do so when a group of Lunarian courtiers stood around them, waiting impatiently for their princess. "I am sorry to hear that, Your Highness. You will be greatly missed."_

"_You honor me. Nevertheless, I am sure that your words shall be much more enlightening than mine could ever be. I have no doubts that the Kingdoms shall come to an agreement during this time with you here." Her eyes wandered to her left suddenly and Cadeyrn subtly looked over as well to see Lady Luna waiting beside the doorway. __**'Time to return to duties, I suppose.'**__ The man mentally sighed._

"_Crown Princess Serenity, is something the matter?" One of the courtiers, a man dressed in the robes of a priest, questioned hesitantly. "Should we perhaps have Lady Mars summoned?"_

_Serenity instantly looked away from the silent conversation she was having with her teacher and turned to the man with a smile on her face. "No, I am quite all right, Lord Yutio. Forgive my inattentiveness." She faced her cousin again and dipped her head. "Please forgive me as well, Prince Cadeyrn. I am afraid I must cut this visit short. I still have to prepare for the welcoming of the Terran delegation and it is drawing late."_

_The man quirked an eyebrow, outwardly showing only polite curiosity while inside he was more than a little shocked. "Terran delegation? I had not been informed that they were invited."_

"_Yes. Queen Selenity graciously extended an invitation to them in hopes trading may possibly be established." She stated, her eyes darting over to the left again before focusing back on his green eyes. "They shall only be staying until the Ball at the end of the week, however."_

"_Thank you for informing me. And for your much esteemed welcome." The Solarian Prince said courtly before bowing and stepping off to the side. "Please. I will not delay you any longer."_

"_Good day, Prince Cadeyrn. Please extend my welcome to the others in the Solarian delegation and my apology for missing their arrival."_

"_Of course, My Lady."_

_Serenity smiled, her eyes softening drastically, but said nothing more as she glided past him and toward the doorway. Cadeyrn watched as all the courtiers hurriedly bowed but they did not follow as the princess joined Lady Luna and spoke with her just outside the door. When the two ladies began walking, they eagerly filed out of the room and anxiously spoke with one another as they hurried to catch up to the heiress of the Silver Millennium._

_Cadeyrn's brow furrowed as he watched his cousin walk further and further away. She had been elegant in her manners and continually held herself like any proper princess should: full of grace, dignity, and pride throughout the entire conversation. Now she was floating down the hall; her movements seemingly effortless._

_Her gown had been made of layer upon layer of sheer white Venusian silk that his mother so-loved because it made garments light and airy. A trait, he knew, was also loved by the Lunarians because it made them seem "ethereal". The bodice was fitted, a line of Neptunian pearls just below the bust and a design of silver interconnecting rings above. The gown itself was no less than four layers thick, preventing the sheer silk from being see-through._

_Instead of the Neptunian pearl barrettes (a gift from the Neptunian Queen herself, if he remember correctly) that were usually ever-present on his cousin's head, now a simple, yet refined, silver tiara sat nestled between the orbs of the Lunarian royal hairstyle. It was pure silver and shaped like a perfect half-band until the very center right above the moon insignia. There it looked as if the thumb and pointer finger of two hands were forming a perfect circle. In the circle was a small, yet perfectly flawless, rare pink Lunarian Moonstone. She wore no other adornments or jewelry, yet he suspected such an action was deliberate so attention was drawn to the finery of the tiara. All and all, Serenity was the personification of grace and beauty; a true princess but not his cousin._

'_**What has happened to you, Serenity?'**__ He frowned at the girl's back, easing picking out the sole blonde amongst the sea of whites, silvers, and pastel hair colors of the Lunarian bloodlines swirling around her. __**'Forgive me for staying away, cousin. Six years has been much too long.'**_

_**----------------------------------------------------------------------**_

"_King Endymion! Please forgive the intrusion but I come bearing crucial tidings that you must--- __**Serenity**__!?"_

_The Great Hall only contained fifteen people that night but they all had frozen at the strange man's abrupt entrance. Now they could do no more than watch in shock as he was suddenly seized by one of the King's guards just inside the double doors he had thrown open. The intruder, in turn, did nothing as the guard pulled his hands behind his back and grabbed a hold of one of his shoulders. Instead he stood transfixed by the sight of his cousin sitting on the Terran King's lap beside a large, roaring fireplace. __**'What in Sol's sake is going on here?'**_

"_Nephrite, please release him. Prince Cadeyrn means no--" Endymion ordered before he was interrupted by the female on his lap jumping off and racing toward the man. "--harm." He sighed before standing up slowly._

"_Kahdy!" _

_The Solarian man neither felt the man drop his arms nor hear Endymion ask the others to vacate the room temporarily nor see Valkyrie hit Nephrite's arm for not recognizing the similarities between Áine and his self. He could only watch silently as his cousin ran across the large room. Yes, __**this **__was his cousin. Not that proper, perfectly behaved and dressed Crown-Princess that he had spoken with and seen during the delegation. This was the girl he had thought was lost forever; the one who called him Kahdy._

"_Serenity…" He grunted in pain as she crashed full speed into his chest but did not dare protest the harsh move. Instead he crushed his cousin to him in a hug as tightly as he could. "I thought I would never see you again."_

"_I am here, Kahdy." The woman murmured as she returned the tight embrace. "I am well."_

"…_I believe it would be acceptable to assume you two know one another, then?" A voice drawled in the background after a few minutes of the two cousins embracing._

_Serenity scowled instantly and turned her head around to face the voice. "Endymion! You are as terrible as Nephrite! Do you not see the likeness between Áine, Cadeyrn, and myself? We are cousins and they are siblings! Nevertheless I have told you--"_

_The man grinned, his eyes softening. "Be at ease, a stór. I am jesting. I remember your stories of Prince Cadeyrn and his kin-relation to you." He removed his eyes from the woman to the man who stood behind her and nodded. "Greetings. It is good to see you once more."_

_Cadeyrn nodded in return but did not --__**could not**__-- remove his gaze from his cousin as she turned around to face him again. Gone was the expensive Venusian silk gown and in its place was a dark green Terran one. Something he had never seen her don because of both the color and the fact it was so unpretentious. No fine embroidery, no encrusted jewels, just an informal gown that perhaps a noblewoman would wear for everyday use. A beige chemise with a square neckline adorned with simple brown silk ribbon, a sleeveless vest-styled bodice, a matching dark green full skirt, modest brown leather boots._

_They were perhaps the most unlike-Serenity garments to wear. __**'No.' **__He mentally corrected himself, '__**It is not like **_**Crown-Princess **_**Serenity to wear.'**__ Her head was unadorned with finery as well; no Neptunian pearl barrettes, no tiaras or crowns, no Lunarian royal hairstyle, __**'and no moon insignia.'**_

_The Solarian sucked in a sharp breath. The sound startled Serenity so much she took a step away and loosened her arms from his stomach. "What is the matter?…Cadeyrn?"_

_The call of his full name was the only thing that pulled the man out of his thoughts. He shook his head yet his eyes still remained fixed on the woman's forehead. "The moon insignia… it is gone."_

_A dainty hand slide up to touch the skin, as if Serenity had just remembered it was unembellished, before she dropped it back down to her side. "It cannot stay upon my flesh here. Not at home." She answered as she completely let go and backed a few feet away to look into her cousin's eyes easier._

_Cadeyrn shook his head slowly, not understanding. "Terra is not your home, cousin. Lunaria is your home and the moon insignia is your birthright."_

_Endymion finally stepped forward then, placing a hand on the woman's shoulder and squeezing it gently. "Serenity is home."_

_Cadeyrn balked at all the familiarity the Terran King was displaying; first Serenity sitting in his __**lap**__, then the teasing and informal names, now casual __**touching**__? "Home… home is where she belongs, Your Majesty. She does not belong on Terra where there is peril at every turn and people who wish to do her harm." He looked down at his cousin, seeing the frown on her face. "Serenity, forgive my words, but you are being foolish. Everyone---"_

"_What everyone believes is wrong." She interrupted. "I left Lunaria of my own will and sound mind. I sought a place of sanctuary and I found one. Here, with the Terrans."_

"_I understand your respect for King Endymion and his people, Serenity, as I hold the same for them." The golden-haired prince said slowly, still marveling over everything. "Yet that still does not denote your continued presence here. Please, come to Sol with me. I will protect you and so will your uncles."_

"_I have stepped upon Sol previously and I was advised to seek Terra. The Uncles know I am here. Your father chiefly contributed to my voyage and would have stayed with me upon Terra had I not convinced him that his presence would become missed."_

_Cadeyrn gaped in disbelief. "Yet I was not been informed of such happenings." His eyes slid up to Endymion. "You knew… the whole time I believed Serenity was gone forever, you knew she was on Terra. __**Safe**__. Why did you not tell me?"_

"_Because I beseeched him not to tell a soul." Serenity answered, her left hand sliding up to cover the one on her shoulder. "You were to be ignorant of my whereabouts."_

_Cadeyrn's eyes remained fixed on the woman's hand. He did not know many Terran customs but he did know the particular one staring at him unwaveringly. Three rings adorned his cousin's hand and one was a marriage ring._

"_And you would do anything to protect your wife from me. For I am the brother of a traitor." He whispered as he eyes slid up to the Terran King._

_Endymion's lips were set in a grim line as he nodded slowly. "Yes." He paused, glancing down at the woman in question before looking back up, his eyes burning with an inner light. "If it comes to that have no doubts that I will protect Serenity from you. At any costs."_

_**

* * *

**_

'_And don't I know it.'_ Motoki grumbled silently as he rubbed his cheek. The swelling had gone the next day but it still remained tender. Now, four days later, it was a variety of colors.

"You know, Darien," Serena began, not bothering to look up from her manga, "I'm starting to understand how you know when I'm staring. The hairs on the back of your neck stand on end, you start to feel a weight bearing down on you, then everything seems still. But that's not the point here!" She abruptly slammed her manga closed, "The point is you said you were going to… class… today…"

Motoki offered a sheepish smile as Serena stared at him unabashedly. "Well, I must say you seem back to normal. Already yelling at Darien."

The girl didn't answer as she stared at her friend in disbelief. Almost the whole left side of his face, from the top of his cheekbone to the bottom of his jaw, was a array of greens, purples, blues, and dark reds. Above his right eye was a cut covered in a butterfly bandage, revealing a small dark blue bruise there as well. Her eyes slid down, seeing the dark purple and red bruise peeking out from the covering of his right T-shirt sleeve. Besides that there were little scrapes all over, like he had rolled around on the ground.

"I'm going to kill him." She growled as she threw back her covers. "He had no right to do this to you. _Ooh! _He wouldn't know what hit him when I'm through with him. I'll show that prissy, overbearing--- _ooh_!"

Motoki grinned as he watched Serena place her feet on the floor and stand before blanching as she stumbled. "Ah! Don't worry about it Serena." He pleaded as raced over to grab a hold of her shoulders to keep her upright. "Trust me, it looks much worse than it feels. Besides, he already apologized Monday."

"I don't care if he already apologized!" She insisted, stomping her sock-clad feet for emphasis. She glowered down at her legs when they refused to move further. _'Stupid Darien… he told me that if I didn't walk around they'd end up like this.'_ She scowled up at Motoki, anger for Darien extending. "He had no right to do that in the _first _place!"

'_Sure. Try telling him that.' _The blonde man smirked as he tried to ease the girl back down to the bed but she refused to budge. He sighed. "Don't _worry _about it, Serena. It was my own fault."

"Did you ask him to beat you up?" She hissed, after a few moments letting the arcade worker ease her back onto her bed. She sat down on it sullenly, crossing her arms over her sweater-clad chest (the doctors had, thankfully, allowed her to start wearing real clothes again yesterday. Given that they were loose enough so they didn't confide her torso). "Well? Did you?"

Motoki's brow furrowed as he backed away and scratched the top of his head. "No."

"Then it wasn't your fault!"

He sighed again, shaking his head. "Look, Darien didn't _really _do anything wrong. He was just worried about you."

She narrowed her eyes. "Tell me what happened. I want to know what he did to you when I go kick his butt and return the favor."

Motoki smiled innocently, but at seeing her glower, gulped nervously. "Uh… He, well, after you fainted, Darien became really protective of you. I walked in when he was looking at your back and we kinda got into an argument when he wouldn't tell me what had happened to you." His look turned sheepish. "I eventually backed down, none to happy, and he told me to stay and watch over you when he went to get medical supplies from his apartment. He said I wasn't allowed to take you to the hospital, not matter what, and I agreed but after he left… you just kept getting worse. And I mean _worse_." He frowned, still uneasy about the incident. It wasn't _normal_, no matter what anyone said. "I swear, you looked like you were convulsing or--or having some horrific nightmare."

Serena frowned, an image of Rei's glowing red eyes coming to her mind and making her shiver involuntarily. _'I was having a nightmare about what she did that night, wasn't I? And for some reason I couldn't wake up from it.'_

"But it wasn't just that." Motoki continued, "You had a really high temperature and kept shivering. Then you were having a hard time breathing and your back kept bleeding…"

Serena's eyes softened as she saw the worry in her friend's eyes. "I'm all right, Motoki. You did the right thing bringing me here. Thank you for worrying about me so much."

He smiled. "Just don't do it again, alright? I was really freaked out and then with Darien being all mad--" He abruptly stopped, seeing the dark look in the girl's eyes. "Uh, that is to say…"

"…You never finished." She growled, a stern frown on her face. "Tell me what happened and why he beat you up."

A small, embarrassed flush seeped into Motoki's cheeks. _'He did not __**beat **__me up. I got some good hits on him too! Damn powers healed him, though. But I managed to give him a temporary black eye, if nothing else.'_ "As…as I was driving here, he spotted me from his motorcycle and began following. He was _furious _and just wouldn't give up so I kept driving, hoping to leave him behind." A goofy grin suddenly appeared on his face as a thought occurred to him. _'I was in a car chase, wasn't I? That's kind of awesome in a dangerous sort of way. Like something out of a movie.'_

Serena rose a sharp eyebrow at her friend's expression. "What else, Motoki?"

He blinked, startled out of his thoughts, before shrugging. "Not much. I got off the freeway before he did, so you were admitted into the hospital before he could stop me. I went outside to wait for him…"

_

* * *

_

_Motoki irritably paced back in front of his car. He'd been surprised to find it exactly where and how he'd left it (running, keys in the ignition, doors open, and all) and had hurriedly parked it a little ways away from the hospital entrance. Out of the way enough so the hospital staff would not immediately see him but still close enough that the weird Darien-Endymion mix would when he came blazing up on his motorcycle. He sighed, glancing down at his wristwatch. __**'9:42'**_

_It had only been seven minutes since he had come outside to wait but it felt like a lifetime; like he was waiting for his death. Motoki paled. __**'No. Endymion's merciful, right? Everyone always made him out to be but, then again, they are biased. What do **_**I **_**know about him? …Not much.' **__He sighed again. __**'No. It will be all right. It has to be because I'm sure Darien will be the one to appear.'**_

_The approaching roar of a motorcycle immediately snapped the man out of his thoughts. He looked over, watching as Darien's black and red motorcycle came closer and closer. Briefly he had a wild thought of the man just running over him and being done with it before shaking his head and dismissing it. Still, his mouth became dry as he swallowed nervously._

_The vehicle zoomed past, not seeing him the first time, but after a moment or two the driver swung his head around and looked straight at the apprehensive arcade worker. Darien (Motoki was praying to every god he knew, Old and New, that it was Darien and not Endymion) turned back around, skidding around a long row of vehicles before cutting across two vacant spaces. Within moments he was in front of Motoki, the roar of his motorcycle fading as he cut the engine. The blonde watched as Darien leisurely kicked down the kickstand before slowly undoing his helmet, the pace of his actions a far cry from how he'd been acting on the freeway. Once the helmet was unfastened, he slid it off and placed it on one of his handlebars before calmly getting off the motorcycle and walking toward Motoki. His eyes and their color were hidden the whole time._

_The blonde gulped, unsure now more than ever. If he was smart he would have hightailed it. __**'No.' **__He gave himself a mental shake. __**'Stop being a coward. My **__name __**means battle-prince for goodness sakes and that is just what I am! I am a prince of Sol and we do not face fear and flee.'**_

"…_Should I bother asking for an explanation?" _

_Darien. Motoki was absolutely positive that his friend was himself and not his previous incarnate right now. He couldn't keep back his sigh of relief as he rubbed the back of his head. "She was getting worse, Dare. Way worse."_

"_And you did not stop to consider that maybe I would have been able to take care of her?" Darien mused, finally looking up at his friend. For Motoki, it was the last piece of evidence he needed to prove that he was really talking to Darien. Blue eyes met his._

_The arcade worker rolled his eyes skyward as the tension began to seep out of his shoulders. "Look, I know you're some genius or whatever and that can come in handy for a lot of things. But not this. You're __**not **__a doctor."_

"_No." The man growled, his golden eyes narrowing. "I thought I was a king and, more importantly, a husband who is more than capable of caring for his wife."_

_Motoki's head snapped down to his friend, taking a startled step back. __**'B-but he was just Darien! He didn't do anything to revert to Endymion. He just did.'**__ His mouth dropped open as he realized what the man said. "W-wife?"_

"_You remember." It was a statement, not a question, yet Endymion still frowned in confusion. "You reacted to your name, Cadeyrn. When you disobeyed my order to stop. Surely you recollect how your cousin Serenity married me."_

_That was when the memories of his cousin, Crown-Princess Serenity of the Silver Millennium, hit Motoki. He staggered back a few feet before he dropped down to his knees, unable to keep his footing as years worth of images, emotions, and feelings assaulted him. When he finally looked up again a few minutes later, the Terran King was staring down at him impassively. "C-cousin…"_

_Endymion blinked, shaking his head. Blue eyes returned and locked on the man that was now grabbing his forehead and wincing in pain. "Motoki? What the hell is wrong with you?" __**'He looks like he's seen a ghost.' **__He thought, taking in the ashen tint of the man's face and his wide eyes._

"_I--I remember." Motoki whispered but Darien wasn't paying attention anymore. His head snapped over to the hospital building, a frown on his face, as his eyes pulsed in gold._

"_Serenity…" Endymion took a step closer to the building but Cadeyrn was suddenly there, blocking his way. He glowered. "Stand aside, Cadeyrn."_

_The man shook his head, a proud tilt in his chin that wasn't there a second ago. He was a Prince of Sol and first cousin to Crown-Princess Serenity of Lunaria; he had all the say in the world to keep Endymion away when he was acting like this. "No. She is with healers, Your Majesty. She needs them."_

_Golden eyes narrowed. "I can heal them just as well as they. She needs __**me**__. I can feel it through our connection."_

_Motoki's brow furrowed at the man's choice of words as he began filtering through his newly found memories. They felt as if they'd just happened moments ago but he could still not recall any "connection" Serenity had with Endymion. Besides their marriage, that is, and even then it felt like the man was referring to something else. "What connection are you speaking of?"_

"_It is nothing to be known by the likes of you."_

_Motoki's mouth dropped open again, this time indignantly. "The likes of __**me**__? I am her cousin and should therefore have the right to know of what you are speaking about."_

_Darien frowned, blue overcoming gold. "You know what I'm 'speaking about', Motoki. Did you ever think that maybe I had a damned good reason I didn't want Serena to go to a hospital? That bringing her here would do more harm than good?" The man's scowl deepened, gold flickering into his eyes. "But no! Let us disobey Endymion and believe he is a fool."_

_Motoki took an uneasy step back at his friend's eyes continued to flicker. One second it was Darien and the next Endymion. __**'What the hell is wrong with him?' **__"Dare… Darien, you all right?" He finally stuttered uneasy as the man stared down at the ground, a hand irritably kneading his forehead._

_The man's head snapped up, golden eyes glowing fiercely in the dimly lit parking lot. "Your actions, Cadeyrn…" The king growled as he stared unwaveringly at the man standing a few feet in front of him, "Dare not say you are a traitor like your sister."_

_The blonde winced, realizing Endymion had been rather forward with that question. "N-no. I am not a traitor like Áine is."_

"_Is." Endymion repeated slowly. "Her reincarnation is a traitor in this life as well. Like I had surmised."_

_Motoki frowned uneasily. __**'Has Áine run into Endymion before? There is no telling how long he's been manifesting out of Darien like this. Even if the first time I saw gold eyes was when he shattered the cup, it could have started much sooner.'**__ "Has Áine done something to offend you, Your Majesty?"_

_Endymion looked at Motoki for a moment before laughing, the sound bitter and cold. "Many a thing. Worse yet is that it seems Bellona has taken a likening to such actions."_

_A cold sweat broke out on Motoki's neck at the words. __**'Something is wrong.'**__ "Bellona… ails from something. She is not the same as she once was."_

"_No. She is not." Endymion growled before a thoughtful frown crossed his lips. "Though… if she is truly ailing as you say, perhaps I will owe her an apology. In her right mind, she herself will be dismayed to learn what she has done."_

_Motoki was baffled and it seems to get worse with every word out of the man's mouth. __**'Apology? Just what happened between them?'**__ "What has Bellona done?"_

_Endymion didn't answer as his gaze wondered over to the hospital building again. A deep frown settled between his eyebrows. "Why are you in so much pain, Sere? The connection feels hollow but I can tell you were injured recently…" He stepped closer to the building, making it past the strange horse his reincarnation had, before Cadeyrn was once again in his way. "This is none of your concern, Cadeyrn." _

_Motoki shook his head. __**'Where's Darien when I need him?'**__ "It is my concern because she needs to be treated."_

"_She does not need to be in there with the injuries she has!"_

_The blonde groaned at the outburst, seeing blue eyes once more. __**'Spoke too soon. Neither of them are very happy with me right now.'**__ "Darien, listen. She needs to be with the doctors __**there**__, not with you out here."_

"_Get out of my way, Motoki." Came the demand as Darien's hands clinched into fists at his sides._

"_No." The blonde insisted, desperate for a way to stall or prevent the man's trek to the building. "I want answers and I think this is just the time for them. Why did Serena faint?"_

"_That isn't any of your business!"_

"_It is because she's my cou--" He cut himself off mid-word, remembering which persona he was talking to at the moment. "…Serena is my friend, a close one at that, and that makes it my business!"_

_Darien's eyes narrowed dangerously, his lips set in a firm line. "What does it matter right now? I need to get her out of that place."_

"_It's a __**hospital**__." Despite trying to stay calm and reason with Darien, there was still an edge in Motoki's tone, "No one is going to harm her. They are going to find out what's wrong with her and heal her."_

"_Hospitals do not always heal." Darien growled, unconsciously rising to his friend's tone and meeting it with his own harsh one. "Does that answer your question about why I don't want her in there? Now will you get out of my way!?"_

"_No. That just tells me you're damn paranoid! Tell me what the hell happened to Serena and why she fainted."_

_Darien stepped forward, his eyes flashing gold for the briefest of seconds before the blue returned. "Sailor Jupiter __**died**__! Is that what you wanted to hear? Serena collapsed when she saw Jupiter's death on the news!"_

_Motoki paled dramatically and took an unconscious step back. Whatever he'd been expecting was most certainly not that. "She… __**died**__? …What is _that _supposed to mean!?"_

_Darien frowned, his eyes becoming gold once more. There was an uneasy look on Endymion's face but his words were steady. "It is exactly as I say, Cadeyrn, Valkyrie has died. I …recall my reincarnation watching it on the …news."_

_Motoki was too overcome by the information to realize something was going on with the man before him as gold and blue began to flash continuously. "Valkyrie…" He didn't remember the woman from so long ago and had only been tentative friends with her in this life, but it still felt like a punch to the gut. "Are you positive she truly died?" He pleaded, looking up desperately._

"_Yes. There, are you happy now?" Darien returned, a pained wince sounding as he shook his head lightly. Why did he feel so tired all of a sudden? "Now get the hell out of my way so I can get to Serena."_

_Motoki scowled immediately, deciding to mourn after this situation was settled. It wasn't the time to think and ponder about the brunette warrior. Not when a whole hospital could be in jeopardy if Endymion became drastic. "No. She is not going to come out of that place until the doctors give her the okay."_

"_I told you what you wanted!" Darien protested angrily. "Get out of my damn way. __**Serenity **__needs me! I feel it through our connection!"_

_Motoki shook his head as he saw gold again. __**'What the hell is wrong with them? It's like they're having an unconscious battle for control of Darien's body.'**__ "No, Your Majesty. I do not know of this connection but she needs to be with healers right now."_

"_Cadeyrn, I am not your king but while you are on my planet, reincarnations aside, you will do as I order." Came the hiss, gold flashing in the dark. "I do not like to do such a thing but you have no say over whether I may see my wife or not. It does not matter if you are kin."_

_He knew he shouldn't have done it but he had become so angry. First it was finding out Serena was injured and being told it wasn't none of his business, then being ordered around by a man who didn't even know he had the right to do so, then having to deal with an angered and protective Darien who would instantly transform into Endymion, then remembering that Serenity had been his cousin and married to Endymion, before finally learning Jupiter had died. It was all too much for him to take in such a short amount of time. At least, that's what he told himself as he threw the first punch of the night._

_A crunch met Motoki's ears as his fist landed onto Darien's jaw, startling the man so much that he fell down to the asphalt parking lot. "I damn well have every right to do this, Endymion. I care about my cousin just as much as you care about her." The blonde spat out._

_The other man looked up, his eyes blue. Darien scowled, wiping some blood from the corner of his mouth. "What is wrong with you? Can't you accept that I have a reason I don't want Serena in that place?" He stood up slowly, the loose rocks moving underneath his feet. His fists clinched again as Motoki narrowed his eyes. "Nothing? You just want to duke this out here and now then?"_

"_Yes." Motoki nodded stiffly, "I have a reason to keep you away and I'll do just that. Even if that means forcibly keeping you away." Seconds later, he staggered back as a punch landed on the side of his face, inches below his eye. He was proud to see he hadn't fallen though he could already feel heat erupting in the area and the skin beginning to swell._

"_If that is the case, Cadeyrn," Endymion smirked, slouching into a defensive position, "be prepared to fight the both of us."_

_Motoki refused to back down. Endymion had been a far better seasoned warrior but Darien's lack of training would pull him down. He himself had had training in both his lives (though, admittedly, this life was nothing compared to the last) and he had a fair chance at winning. He looked up at his newly found opponent impassively, seeing the cold determination in Endymion's gold eyes. He took a deep breath; he __**had **__to win, otherwise things would be much more complicated than they needed to be._

_The blonde had no idea who threw the third punch, not like it matter much, but soon he and Endymion were trading hit for hit. A punch in the eye for a knee in the stomach, a tackle for a kick that sent one of them spiraling to the ground, a jab in the ribs for a shot at the chin, smirks, taunts, jeers; it went on and on with no signs of stopping. It was a constant struggle of being on the defensive one minute before being the aggressor the next. For Motoki, besides trying to keep himself standing and fighting Darien, he also had to watch what he would jeer out to his opponent. More than once he had to stop his words short because Darien would appear, stunning him with a move that he expected from Endymion and unknowingly tearing a comment intend only for the King out of his mouth._

_Motoki winced as he crashed down onto the asphalt, the other man tumbling down beside him due to the hold he had on his shirt. Without giving Endymion (or was it Darien now?) time to recover, he flipped over and slammed one of his sneaker clad feet into the man's diaphragm. The breath left the darker-haired man's mouth in a whoosh and he wheezed temporarily before lashing out and slamming his elbow into Motoki's stomach. The blonde groaned, rolling onto his abused abdomen and using his forearms and legs to push himself into a crouch. He hissed through his teeth as he felt something pull in his shoulder before staring at Darien. It was indeed his friend this time, his dark blue eyes barely visible as it had gotten darker and later into the night._

_Darien was coughing still, the attack on his diaphragm much harsher than even Motoki expected, but his eyes were narrowed dangerously on the blonde. Said man frowned lightly; he'd grossly underestimated Darien's fighting abilities. He didn't know why the man was fighting like he was: it could be instinctive, Tuxedo Mask's abilities, or Darien might even have some unknown training in his background. All Motoki knew was that this was a man used to more than a little backyard brawl from time to time. He wasn't up to Endymion's level but he could easily be at the mid-lower levels taught at Headquarters. He knew where to hit, how to bide his time, and what to say to get his opponent to react like he wanted to. All things that required time, patience, __**study**__. Which is why Motoki was willing to bet Endymion had been present in Darien longer than anyone had anticipated._

"_You gonna tell me what the hell happened to Jupiter and why she died yet?" He finally asked as he slowly stood to his feet. "Or will I keep having to repeat myself over and over again?"_

_Dairen snorted, coughing once more, before he struggled to his feet as well. "Why should I bother telling you anything? You made it perfectly clear that you prefer actions over words right now." With that said, he pulled back his fist and punched his friend for all he was worth, unknowingly in the same place his incarnate had originally. "That was for the damn sucker punch you gave me that started this."_

_Motoki instantly fell back onto his backside. He surly glared up at Darien but it wasn't very effective because he could only see out of one eye. He could just imagine what the other looked like: swollen, a nice blend of purples, reds, and blacks, the whites of his eyes barely visible. Actually, he __**knew **__that was what it looked like because Darien had a swollen eye too. A matching swollen eye, matching asphalt scrapes on his exposed skin, and matching bruises on his face, arms, and (more than likely) stomach as well, to be exact._

_Of course Motoki also had a slightly pulled shoulder muscle, a cut above an eyebrow caused by falling on a large piece of loose rock, and was pretty sure something was wrong with one of his ribs. Darien, on the other hand, had a corner of his mouth split and swollen, his right hand was bright red and twice its normal size, and… the blonde grinned as he saw the heavy pants Darien was taking. Warrior instincts he may have but he did not have a warrior's stamina. "What? Tired already?"_

"_Would you care to say that once more, Cadeyrn?"_

_The arcade worker gulped, suddenly finding a __sword pointing dangerously close to his jugular. He hadn't even seen Endymion make the slightest move, let alone draw the weapon from who knows where. He stared up at the man, almost pleadingly, but Endymion just stared back at him --almost as if he was daring him to make a move. Motoki was not an idiot though; he had no way to fight because he had neither powers nor weapons. After a long, silent moment, he bowed his head as low as he dared without harming himself. "K-king Endymion."_

_It was his defeat, his surrender, and both men knew it. Still, Motoki's mind whirled madly as he tried to think of a way to keep Endymion from going inside that hospital. __**'Maybe he would be willing to compromise?'**__ He thought hopefully, __**'He knows he is reincarnated so if I can get him to revert back to Darien…'**__ As the sword was drawn away from its dangerous position, Motoki's head snapped up to see Endymion walking toward the hospital. He gaped in disbelief for a moment, allowing the man to walk a few more yards, before he finally spoke. "Hey! You still haven't told me what happened to Jupiter!"_

_When the retreating man turned his head, blue eyes were light up in amusement. "You're beginning to sound like a little kid again, Motoki."_

_Motoki fought the urge to beat his head against the ground as he noticed the man's hands were empty now; Endymion's sword vanished when his persona did, apparently. __**'Ah! Why can't they just decide who they want to be!? Or, better yet, why can't Darien figure out that something is wrong! But no, he hasn't even noticed that he's only been here half the time! For Sol's sake!'**_

_He scowled angrily, standing up, before he noticed that Darien had used his silence to walk further way. "I was talking to you, damn it!" He yelled, not caring in the least how loud he got anymore. No one, not even security, had come out in all this time. The way he saw it, if no one had noticed two men fighting in the parking lot, no one was going to come out and see what all the yelling was about._

_Darien, apparently, did not care about his friend's obvious agitation in the least because he kept walking. Motoki felt his teeth grind together as the man became closer and closer to the front entrance doors. "You have no right to keep information from me!" he yelled in a last ditch effort, "How do I know you are not endangering Serena right now!?"_

_Those were the magic words, Motoki knew, because Darien immediately stopped in his tracks. He barely noticed how the man's fists clinched as his sides once again before his head dropped and he turned around. It felt like both a lifetime and a second before Darien was standing in front of the blonde. "…You believe I am a danger to her?" Came the growl as the man's head lifted up. Gold eyes narrowed onto green ones. "Is that why you are acting in such a manner and keeping me away?"_

_Motoki scowled, fed up with the constant changing between one personality and the other. He crossed his arms over his chest, an eyebrow raised. "You want the truth, Endymion? I think, that despite whatever danger you may or may not believe Serenity is in right now, __**you **__are the greatest threat to her."_

"…_Is that so?" The man drawled tightly before an amused smile graced his lips. Slowly his stance began to lose some of the tenseness. "It seems that we are at an impasse then, Cadeyrn, for I believe __**you **__are a danger to Serenity."_

_The once Solarian man's mouth dropped open in outrage. "I would never harm Serenity! I only want what's best for her!"_

_Endymion's eyes narrowed as his smile became stiff. "Yet your actions state otherwise. The connection between Serenity and I is seemingly failing more rapidly by the moment and the longer I cannot get to her to reestablish it, the more danger __**you **__are placing her in. …Or is that your plan, Cadeyrn?" The smile finally dropped off the monarch's face._

"_I didn't even know the two of you had a connection!" Motoki burst out, "How can I be sabotaging something that I didn't even know existed!? And don't you dare say that I am working against Serenity! I have every intention to see that she is safe and well! I always have!"_

"_Then dare not say that I am a danger to my own wife." The Terran King hissed. In his hand, his sword abruptly reappeared yet he made no move to use it. "You are the one placing her in danger by keeping me away."_

_Motoki's eyes fixated on the sword but after a moment he looked up with a smirk. "Then what are you going to do, Endymion? I would have believed pulling a sword on an unarmed man was beneath you. Already you pulled one on me when I was downed."_

_The King tightened his grip on his weapon but it did not move from his side. "Indeed. However this is a different day and age. How are you sure that I do not consider such a thing beneath me __**now**__? …What is that saying? 'Desperate times call for desperate actions'."_

"_Measures." Motoki corrected in a grumble before blanching as he released where Endymion was heading with his words. __**'No… He wouldn't, would he?' **__"You--you would not dare to kill me." He finally uttered after a long moment, "It would weigh heavily on your mind."_

_A snarl lifted up Endymion's lips. "Many a thing weigh heavily on me. Do you consider yourself so worthy that you would make any difference?"_

"_No." Came the near-silent whisper as Motoki met Endymion's eyes fearlessly. "I am no better than anyone else. But I know you, Endymion, and I also know that my death would devastate Serenity. No matter if she remembers who I truly am to her or not, she would be devastated. If you care about your wife as you say, then you would not dare to harm her in such a manner."_

"_Do not presume you know me so well, Cadeyrn. You do not." The Terran King answered, though the sword disappeared from his hand as he spoke. "We were not friends, barely even of acquaintance. You were nothing more than a means of getting what I wanted."_

_Motoki swallowed thickly at the callous words. __**'This… this can't be Endymion. The snippets of Endymion I remember aren't that bitter or spiteful.'**_ _But Motoki knew what he really wanted to say: this couldn't be the man that Darien once was. "What--what happened to you?" He finally stuttered in a mixture of fear and awe._

_Endymion laughed, the same cold and bitter sound from before. It made immediately Motoki wish for Darien's return. "Ignorance is dangerous and certainly not something to relish in, Cadeyrn. Be sure to remember that for you do not know many a thing. I see the look in your eyes. You do not even recollect me from so long ago."_

_Motoki licked his lips nervously; a calm, cold Endymion was definitely more apprehensive than an angry one that threatened him with swords. His brow crinkled as he struggled to remember anything about the Terran King that disproved his words. Glimpses of him at the delegation: a powerful man who knew what he wanted, both of them laughing at Jadeite's expense when Bellona set his trousers on fire once more, watching the devotion and love he had for Serenity. There wasn't much but… "That is true. I--I only remember some things but in none of them were you like this. So what happened that would make you act so bitter and callous?"_

"_I once told you that if it came to it, I would protect Serenity from you at any costs. Do you remember that night?" Endymion asked instead of answering._

"_Yes." The blonde whispered as he nodded his head once. "It was the same night I came barging into the castle only to learn you and Serenity had been married. …That sure was a surprise." _

_Endymion gave a genuine smile and as the parking lot light flickered above them, Motoki momentarily saw how unearthly his eyes were glowing. It was already eerie how sometimes his eyes looked pupil-less, seemingly unseeing as gold completely compassed the irises and made his pupils so small they looked like there weren't there. It wasn't natural; he remembered enough to know that Endymion had had blue eyes, just like Darien, in the Silver Millennium. __**'Something happened to him during that final battle. For him to gain gold eyes and act like this, something **__had __**to have happened but I can't remember…'**_

"_I _will _protect, Serenity." Motoki looked up silently at the fierce whisper, unable to shake the foreboding that was suddenly crawling over him. "No matter what it takes, I will not fail her. Not again."_

_And then suddenly Motoki opened his eyes to find himself on his back and staring up at the night sky. He blinked, more than a little disoriented, and wondered what in Sol's blazes happened. Wasn't he just talking to Endymion? On his __**feet**__?_

'_**And shouldn't I be angry?'**__ He wondered, unable to find anger, nervousness, or any of the other emotions he had been experiencing that night. Instead he felt strangely calm, almost as if all his troubles had been put to rest. He began to shake his head at the thought but instead winced as pain instantly exploded on the back of his skull. As he lifted a hand to the area, he found no blood but there was still a bump the size of his fist there. __**'That's gonna be a hell of a headache tomorrow.'**__ He bemoaned silently as he turned his head._

_He blinked at the sight of a root protruding out of the ground. One that most certainly had not been there earlier._

_Sometime during the fight, he and his companion had worked their way to one of the tree planters that dotted the parking lot. Now one of the tree's roots had seemingly been… torn?… from the dirt it was encased in. Motoki's mouth dropped open in shock as the root slivered back a few _noticeable _inches closer to the tree's base. He was distracted from the unbelievable sight when he felt something on his shoe. He was determined to ignore it until whatever it was moved up higher to his ankle. With a few grumbled expletives and a handful of pained groans, he managed to push himself up on his elbows only to discover his whole body ached. …And that there was another root wrapped around his right ankle._

_His mouth dropped open wider, if such a thing was possible. Almost as if enjoying the amazement, the root twisted itself around the man's leg tighter, sliding up and around itself, and just before reaching the knee it began to unravel. Motoki blinked again as he followed the roots trek back "home" to the tree and the ground. Once it was back to its proper place, it have a little wiggle before stilling. Motoki slid his eyes over to the other root, seeing that it had done the same thing. Now both looked perfectly normal, only the disturbed soil the sign of anything out of the ordinary. __**'He-- Endymion …**_**tripped **_**me with tree roots!?'**__ He squeezed his eyes shut and eased himself down onto his back. __**'This is ridiculous!' **_

_And where, exactly, had the said man gone? Motoki strained his ears to track Endymion's movements but after a few seconds realized that he simply hurt too much to do anything but lay there. __**'Besides, knowing him, he's probably already found Serena. That or is holding some up by sword-point.'**__ He groaned at the thought, knowing that it was probably true. __**'What exactly happened on Lunaria? By Sol, I wish I could remember more.'**_

_Then, as if his ancient kingdom heard his wish, he suddenly began to remember. And it _hurt._ He was positive that he would keel over any minute, especially because he had only just remembered Serenity as well and recalling so much in such a short time was draining --both mentally and physically._

"_The connection…" the Terran King's faint murmur carried on the cold wind as, a few yards away, he finally began walking to the hospital, "perhaps I may be able to reestablish it with energy. Otherwise--"_

_Motoki moaned piteously, not even aware of how Endymion --now with _blue _eyes(2)-- looked back briefly before shaking his head and turning away. Only one thought had room in his hazy mind as the memories assaulted him ruthlessly. __**'Well, Commander certainly left some things out, didn't he?'**_

* * *

'_And now I'm so confused.'_ Motoki thought woefully. Sure, he could remember Endymion now, as well as his own trips to ancient Terra, and a few scattered memories of "the Final Days" (as be began to dub them). Yet when one question was answered, a thousand more appeared in its place and, as it turned out, the very last time he had seen Endymion the man had had blue eyes still. So when --and more importantly _how_-- he had gotten them was still a mystery.

"You went out to wait for him _and_…?" Serena asked as the man trailed off, a hazy look in his eyes. "Motoki! What did Darien do when he arrived here!?"

The man blinked, shaking his head lightly. "And he knocked some… things… into my head." He offered awkwardly. "Then he just walked off while I was lying there and that was it. But don't be mad at him, I'm the one who threw the first punch."

She narrowed her eyes. "Why?"

"Why'd I hit him first?" Motoki asked, receiving a tense nod in reply. "I told you, I was mad and worried. Darien was too and we, well… clashed?"

"_**But **_**Mom**_**, I didn't do nothin'!"**_

"_**Do not lie to me, mister! I caught you red-handed in your sister's room!"**_

"Of all the _stupid_--!" Serena sputtered with a glare. "You don't get into a fight over that kind of thing! Besides, you should have known better than to--"

Motoki winced, unconsciously taking a few steps back as the girl began to rant. _'Jeez. She really _is _feeling better isn't she? I mean, I'm glad she is, but she's actually kinda scary right now going on and on like that. It's not like I can tell her what _actually _happened.'_

"_**But I didn't do all **_**that**_**! I was just gonna put a rubber snake in her bed for when she comes home; that's it! Honest!"**_

"--It's bad enough that now you look like you went through a meat grinder! Now I have to go and beat up Darien _for _you because he doesn't have a scratch on him!"

'_Sorry we don't all have healing powers.'_ The man grumbled to himself before wincing as she continued on heatedly. _'Sol save me!' _He pleaded silently after a moment, _'Anything. Commander, the Generals, a youma! Just let me out of this room or make her stop!'_

"_**Shingo Tsukino, do not lie to me!"**_

"And another thing---!"Serena's mouth abruptly slapped shut as she heard her brother's name echo into her room from the hallway. Her brother's _full _name, yelled by a very familiar and stern sounding woman. _'Mom? But I thought she was taking Shingo to the dentist today.'_

"_**But I'm not!"**_

"_**When I went to put laundry away in Serena's room yesterday, it did not look like that! I certainly didn't do it and neither did your father, so who was it?"**_

"_**I dunno. …But it wasn't me, I swear!"**_

"_**I don't want to hear it, Shingo."**_ Their mother sounded tired now, her voice less stern but sounding even closer. _**"You are going to march right in there, look your sister in the eyes, and **_**apologize**_** for what you did to her room. Do you hear me, mister?"**_

"_**Yes, Mom."**_ Came the grumble just before the hospital room was pushed open rather forcibly. Shingo, looking quite chastised but still moody, appeared with their mother steps behind him. She, in turn, had a slight scowl on her face with her arm crossed over her chest --her "no nonsense" expression.

"Mom? What are you doing here?" Serena asked hesitantly, trying not to let that familiar expression get to her. Usually she received it after trying to make light of a failed test or quiz; it was a never a good look.

The woman sighed heavily as she closed the door behind her and her son. She gave a nod and smile to Motoki, who was practically pressed against the window by now, before discreetly giving her eldest the once over to make sure she looked well. When she saw how healthy the girl looked, she gave a bright grin. "I thought I should bring over those art supplies you wanted for Hotaru and yourself early but I see she isn't here…"

"She's with her mom." Came the whisper as Serena shifted uncomfortably on her bed. It always made her sad when she thought about how lonely and terrible it would be to see her own mother lying still and death-like in a coma; she knew Hotaru felt the same but the girl was always impassive, especially when she came back from her visits. "She should be coming back soon."

Ikuko nodded shortly as she walked over to Hotaru's bed, pulling the straps of a green paper bag off one of her shoulders as she went. "I bought some more construction paper," she remarked as she placed the carrier on the bed, "because I only found a few sheets where you said they were in your room. Which reminds me. Shouldn't you be saying something now, Shingo?"

Serena scowled as she looked over at her brother. He still stood in the doorway, though now he was sticking his tongue out at her and pulling down one of his eyelids in a raspberry. She was just about to return the favor when their mother spun around, her hands on her hips, and he quickly stopped, his shoulder slumping down. "Sorry I messed up your room… even though I _didn't _do it." He tried to finish in a mumble but everyone still heard him.

The blonde's brow crinkled in confusion and, as she quickly looked over at Motoki, saw that he was in the same state. "Uh… what'd you do?"

The boy eagerly opened his mouth, no doubt wanting to say "Nothing!", when Ikuko spoke. "He trashed your room sometime between me putting laundry away last night and when I went in looking for art supplies this morning." She shook her head in dismay, "I swear, it looks like someone opened a bag and turned it upside down. Manga, clothes, crumpled papers, hair accessories. Your belongings are _everywhere_. Piled on the bed, the floor, on the _ceiling fan_. I can't imagine how he did it without either your father or I knowing…"

Shingo scowled angrily. "I keep telling you, I didn't do _it_! Why should I bother making a bigger mess of her room than it already is!? Rubber snakes in her bed, _that's_ what I was doing!"

Serena gaped at her family in disbelief, her mouth opening and closing. Even by the time she found words, it took a few tries for them to come out. "Like… someone… opened a bag and… turned it upside… _down_?" She got out slowly, unbelievably.

Ikuko sighed. "Yes, dear. A bag turned upside down from the ceiling. That's just how much of a mess your brother caused."

The blonde continued to gape for a few moments longer before a giggle escaped her dry lips. Soon the little giggles gave way to deep laughs and everyone, including the silent Motoki, began to look at her like she'd gone crazy. But she couldn't stop. She laughed at the odd faces everyone was wearing, at the irony of her brother getting in trouble for the collapse of her subspace pocket, and at her situation in general, really. And soon she was laughing so hard tears of mirth were trailing down her cheeks and she gasped out, "May--maybe Luna did it!", because that truly was the truth this time and she could _finally _tell it.

Then she laughed at that too.

* * *

Jadeite groaned as he rolled over on his bed. _'What is that noise?'_ He laid there, staring at the ornate drawings of redwoods on the ceiling as he strained his ears trying to figure out what woke him up. He had his answer moments later.

"…You specifically told us that Tuxedo Mask and Sailor Moon were new stations that appeared in this lifetime and that they weren't significant to our search. But guess what? I think them being Endymion and Serenity is pretty damn significant!"

"What the--?" He murmured to himself as threw back his bed covers, instantly half-stumbling half-running out of the room and to the door that connected Zoisite's room to his own. Once there, he opened it only to stop short as he saw his friend pacing in front of the sofa irritably.

"What would you have done if I had told you the truth?" Jadeite's brow furrowed; Commander was on the speakerphone and he was noticeably frustrated and tired, edgy in his tone. "You would have jumped onto the next plane to Tokyo and ruined everything!"

Zoisite's attention snapped over to the phone. "Don't even go there, Commander. You ruined everything just fine on your own! Really, what would you have done if either of them had died in a youma battle!?"

"You damn well know that they're both fine!" Came the angry retort, "Do you even _realize _who were are talking about? The king of the _entire _planet and his wife, the _heiress _to _Lunaria_. Genealogy and genetics say that they're probably two of the most powerful people that will ever exist!"

"Yeah, and neither know that, huh?" Jadeite felt his eyes roll at his fellow general's retort; it was weak and he knew that as soon as Zoisite's growled, he had realized the same thing. "And hey, let's not forget to mention the fact that Valkyrie is _**dead **_just because you never bothered to inform Nephrite of her presence amongst the others!"

"What the fuck?" Jadeite sputtered in shock, his words finally alerting Zoisite of his presence. The black-haired man simply looked at him before returning his attention to the phone, glaring down at it as if he could transfer his hate through the device. After a second he did a double take of Jadeite, eyeing the man's choice of bedclothes incredulously.

Jadeite frowned, looking down to see he was only in a pair of red boxers that had several chibi-Sailor Mars' outlined in white in various poses about the material. Honestly he didn't see anything wrong with it; he'd even purchased a whole week's set of various versions of the boxers. _'I only wish I'd have known that they made these sooner. And now I feel bad for Nephrite's Christmas gift if Val's really gone…'_

"Do you think I wanted Valkyrie to die!?" Commander blurted out incredulously, not knowing of Jadeite's presence or the appraisal of his undergarments on the other side of the connection. "I thought she was a damn imposer like this Rei is with Bellona! Hell, _she _herself thought she was a _teenager _in high school not a twenty year old with a child and husband!"

'_Wha--?' _Jadeite felt his eyes bulge in shock as he swung his gaze from his boxers to the phone disbelievingly. A snarl lifted up Zoisite lips, "That doesn't change the facts, does it?" he asked scathingly. "Both Nephrite and their daughter have been here in Tokyo for months, according to you, and you never told us that! And on top of all that, they're Endymion's --or rather Darien's -- _neighbors_, of all things."

"Hey, hey, now!" Artemis protested. "I didn't know that until a few days ago myself! I heard that right out of Nephrite's mouth myself and according to him it was completely coincidental! I _would _have told you about him being Darien's neighbor had I known."

"Would you really?" Zoisite snorted disbelievingly. "_I _only knew about Bellona being in a coma because I stumbled upon her chamber! _Nephrite _only knew about you being Darien's lawyer because he found a "memento" of your college days in the Records Room! What other secrets are we going to have to trip over before you speak up?"

"Don't you dare blame all the secrecy on me, Zoisite! You could have _easily _told Jadeite about Bellona if you had wanted to and let's not forget that I'm positive Jadeite and Kunzite are withholding information too. Terra, even Caderyn is probably withholding something!"

Jadeite shook his head in bafflement, wondering just when everyone had started keeping secrets from one another. Once upon a time the four generals, their King, and their teacher had all pried themselves on their confidence and reliance on one another. Yet, add a few years _--'all right, maybe more than a _few _years.'--_ and suddenly everything was lies and secrecy, not confidence and honesty.

Zoisite was shaking his head at the speakerphone. "That may be, Commander, but _you _are the one that has kept most of the secrets here. And one just so happens to be _the _most important one."

Artemis groaned, rubbing his forehead in agitation. "What do you what from me, Zoisite?"

"Tell me your joking." Zoisite pleaded into the phone. He suddenly gave a hysterical laugh, making Jadeite wonder if the man had finally lost it. "That has to be it, right? After all the Commander I know would never use an unsecured landline in the first place!"

The caller's voice was steady, if a little pleading himself. "I'm not joking."

Zoisite swore and ran a hand through his hair, looking at Jadeite briefly before turning his attention back to the phone. "Do you realize what you've done?"

Artemis sighed heavily. "I know."

The dark-haired man began pacing in unrest again. "No. I don't think you realize the gravity of the situation, Commander. Just last night I was telling Jadeite that I had full confidence in what you're doing. You've destroyed that belief with a twenty minute conversation."

"What do you want me to say, Zoisite? That I'm sorry? That isn't good enough and I know it. It sounds more than pathetic to my own ears."

"I want you to tell me why you've hidden all these things from us. Or wait, was it just Jadeite and me that you were hiding everything from? Does every one else know that you've been making a laughing stock of our mission for years?"

Artemis leaned back in his chair so he wouldn't be tempted to bang his head against the desk. If he continued to do that it just might create an Artemis-shaped indent. "Don't start blaming me for things that you know aren't true. You know damn well that only a handful of people even know Endymion exists right now."

"Five years! Five _goddamn _years!" Came the hiss as Zoisite kicked a leftover pizza box from last night. "You've known where Darien's been for five years and you never breathed a word of it to anyone."

Jadeite felt his breath catch in his throat, unable to believe the words flowing out of the enraged man's words. _'I don't understand. …Why would Commander hide such a huge thing? Why the secrecy?'_ He shook his head in wonder, looking around the littered hotel room. _'Was it just last night that Zoi and I were laughing and joking over a mountain of food just like old times? Where we were talking about the possibilities of life with Endymion and everyone else around us again? …It feels like ages ago.'_

Artemis was visibly breathing heavily through his nose but when he finally spoke minutes later, his voice was calm and forceful. "What was I supposed to tell you? _'Oh, hey, you know I thought Endymion's reincarnation died when he was six in a car accident but guess what? A little birdie told me that there was a boy living in a Japanese orphanage that was orphaned about the time he died but here's the kicker, he know his name is Darien. And, most importantly, that was Endymion's reincarnation's name! So, you know, I think that's good enough for me and I'm going out on a limb and guessing that it's him!'_ Does _any _of that sound credible to you, Zoisite?"

"I would have believed you!"

Artemis rolled his eyes in disbelief. "_Please_. You would have looked at me the exact same way the directors of the orphanage did when I asked them if Darien had any _unusual _abilities. They fricken thought I was trying to be Charles Xavier!"

Jadeite felt a smirk crack his dry lips at the man's words and sheer lunacy of the conversation. _'That would just be like Commander too. He was never very good a tactful conversations.'_

"Oh, so we're X-Men now?" Zoisite nearly sneered, wiping the smirk off Jadeite's face. "Wow. Who would have thought that was the aim you were going for when you found me on the streets that day."

"Shut up." Artemis snapped in irritation. "You have no idea what's been running through my mind all these years. Do you think I was _happy _to be forced to leave Darien behind as I went my merry way back half-way around the world? I couldn't very well uproot an endeavor that I had been forming for decades!"

"You damn well know that's a lie! A court order couldn't have stopped you from kidnapping him, at the very _least_. He's your King and you let him rot anyway in an orphanage where who knows what happened to him and don't even get me started on this endeavor of yours!"

"You weren't mad when this endeavor gave you a stable home now were you!?"

"I had been having nightmares about watching strangers die for years! Of course I'd go with you when you said you could explain what was happening!"

Jadeite winced as the men's yelling seemed to echo throughout the room. He debated on whether or not to interfere and take the call off speakerphone but, before he move more than a few feet, Zoisite took action. Warily he watched as the man leaned over the same end table where the phone base sat, his arms on both sides of the device. His voice, thankfully, was at a decent level when he spoke. "Just--just tell me why you never bothered informing us that you are Darien's _lawyer_. You've known where he's been continually for five _years _and, from what I gather, you were also close to him before this accident that killed his parents. Tell me, was it the stolen--"

"Investing! I'm _investing!_" Artemis cried out indignantly. The two men on the other side of the call heard a loud bang and slight rattling, signifying the man had pounded his fist into his desk.

Jadeite groaned as the tension and agitation in the room shot back up to the levels it was just at. _'What I wouldn't give for some of Bellona's herbal tea right now.'_ He smiled fondly, feeling some of the tension leave his body at the reminder of his firebird. '_I should have come to terms with her coma days ago. Yet it took me until last night to realize that just because she's in one doesn't mean she's absolutely never going to wake up. There's always a chance she will…'_

Zoisite was snarling at the phone and, as Jadeite caught sight of the expression, he was reminded of a rabid dog. The auburn-haired general had to smirk once more. "I don't want to hear about what you think you are doing." Zoisite bit out angrily. "The fact of the matter is that you now have to come to Tokyo to oversee a problem _you've _created. Said problem being that you've been _embezzling _money that Darien's deceased parents left behind for him! And, since you never gained custody of him and never bothered to fight for him, a Board that was created to oversee his father's finances is now supposed to _evaluate _him to see if he can legally handle said money! Then if that's not bad _enough_, if he's found _incompetent _to handle his money, they have all the right in the world to look through every single one of his accounts and transactions. Doing so, then, would reveal that part of his money has been going into an overseas account for years and that account is funding Headquarters and the whole operation!"

Jadeite was sure his jaw was somewhere on the ground yet he couldn't find the strength to pick it back up. _'So __**that **__is why Zoisite is so mad.'_ He gaped at the news, stunned to do now more than blink stupidly. _'All I can think anymore is that this is __**really **__bad. I always knew that the parents of some of the students paid for a small bit of Headquarter's expenses, like mine do, but I had assumed that the rest came from Artemis --from his own personal wealth. I'd never had suspected it came from Endymion. Without that money, Headquarters would probably collapse.'_

"Damn it!" Artemis snapped, his fist banging down on his desk once again. "Do you have to pick and pull at every single one of my damn flaws, Zoisite!?"

"How can I _not _when they are glaring red and staring right in my face!"

"I did what I thought was right!" Artemis hissed, all his frustrations and guilt finally bubbling out. "I know very well how many godforsaken mistakes I've made in all this. I _know _I could have kidnapped Darien if I had wanted to. Court orders would --_could!_-- not have stopped me and everything would have been a hell of a lot easier than it is now. Darien would have been raised as the soldier and king he needs to be. He would have known everything about his heritage and I would have taught and told him just as much. Everything would have been fine _now _but I was thinking of the _future_. What would the world have done if they'd realized that their king was kidnapped! Would they really have accepted him so readily if they knew that the circumstances of his adolescence were suspicious!?"

"That's bull!" Zoisite snapped and Jadeite winced as heard the rage ready to boil over the surface. _'Oh, he has really been bottling everything up. That's not good, I'd expected _me _to be the one yelling at Commander, not Zoi. Then again, Zoi's been really stressed these last few months, especially since he's trying to take over Kunzite's duties in addition to his own.'_

"I don't give a damn what you think!" Artemis yelled. "I've made mistakes and I acknowledge that. Do you think I'm happy my King doesn't know anything, that he grew up without a damn family?! Or how about Valkyrie's death? Do you think I'm happy that I inadvertently caused it by not telling Nephrite that Jupiter was with the Senshi? Her death is on my conscious every damn minute of every damn day now!"

"Commander--"

"No, shut up." Artemis snapped. "You are going to listen to this. What about Bellona? Do you think I hid the fact that she's in a coma because I _wanted _to cause Jed or anyone else pain? _No_! I hid her to protect her! Did you know that she is receiving prophecies in that coma of hers? She _herself_ prophesized that Áine would find her and I am _not _going to let that happen! Even if she has to be moved to the Himalaya Mountains to be protected, I will do it! There's no doubt about it!"

Jadeite absently took a step back, not noticing the shocked expression on Zoisite's face that mirrored his own. _'S--she's receiving visions while she's in a coma? How is that possible?'_

"C-commander…" The dark-haired general stuttered in shock as he looked down at the phone. "Bellona is receiving visions still?"

Artemis sighed, tugging at his white hair in aggravation. "Yes, Zoi. You assumed that she was in a coma because she was on the verge of dying but that's _not _the case. I haven't determined what exactly caused the coma but she's been receiving visions for centuries. I had hoped that leaving you to your assumptions would make sure you wouldn't mention anything. Of course, your big fat mouth ruined that!"

Jadeite groaned, slapping his forehead at his superior's stupidity. _'Now he's gone and made Zoisite mad again. I guess I should be happy I'm too stunned and tired to join in on their argument. I have my own choice words with Commander right now…'_

"My big fat mouth!?" Zoisite yelled in indignation.

"Yes your big fat mouth! You just had to tell Jadeite you'd seen a woman that looked like Bellona and admit it couldn't be her because Bellona's really in a coma!"

"You're lucky that I _saw _whoever that girl is and told you that she even existed. I bet you didn't know that, huh!?" Artemis bit his lip, squeezing his eyes shut as silence rippled throughout the line. "You knew that she existed!" Zoisite accused disbelievingly. "You knew that there were practically two Bellonas who looked exactly the same and never told us!"

"Yes, all right! I knew!" Artemis admitted angrily. "I've been having Cadeyrn notify me every time a Senshi arrived. When Mars appeared, he told me that she was a civilian Shinto priestess named Rei Hino. Like with every Senshi, he sent me a picture of their transformed state and their civilian state, once he learned it. I _knew _she looked identical to Bellona but I _also _knew it couldn't be her because Bellona is _here_. She's an imposter, without a doubt."

"…You knew Rei existed and you never told us." The black-haired general repeated. "…Is _that _why you told us to not worry about the Senshi!?"

"I told you not to worry about the Senshi because they aren't part of your responsibilities! Besides, I told you, I already knew she was an imposter. For Terra's sake, Cadeyrn reported she regularly _flirts _with Endymion! Does that sound like Bellona to you!?"

"Whether she's Bellona or not isn't the point here, Commander! The point is that you're hiding things from us and making accusations and assumptions left and right! You _assumed _Valkyrie was an imposer too and where did that get her? I'll tell you! Electrocuted by her own storm and _dead_ without a sign of her body anywhere!"

"Oh, I'd _love _to hear you say that so carelessly to Nephrite!" Artemis retorted angrily. "I bet you're happy she's dead because you were _jealous_! Nephrite found his soul-mate, married her, and had a _child _with her while you haven't even met yours again."

"…_Fine_." Zoisite snarled, not noticing how Jadeite was wincing. "You want me to admit it, I will! I _was _jealous of Nephrite and Valkyrie's life! I wanted to be the one with a wife and child! _I _wanted to be the one who practically had their future set in stone! Is that so _wrong _of me? I'm damn well sure that every single one of the other generals secretly thought the exact same thing. Terra, I know even _you _were jealous! Don't you wish you had Luna with you right now?"

"Don't bring her into this! We both made our choices a long time ago!" Artemis retorted, banging his fist against the desk once more.

"Just because you decided one thing doesn't mean you don't long for another!" Zoisite said, unconsciously stating the thought that was running through his fellow general's mind. Both men knew that the ties of soul-mates, especially concerning everyone in their group, were unable to be denied.

"I was jealous of Nephrite too! There, are you happy now!?" The white-haired man bit out. "But I accepted long ago that that kind of future isn't a possibility for me and that it hasn't been for most of my life. And you know what else?"

"_What?_" Zoisite spat.

"I have to say that I can't be jealous of Nephrite anymore, Zoisite, and that I am _ashamed _to say that I ever was. Tell me, has it occurred to you yet that maybe he found Valkyrie so soon because she would have been taken away from him even _sooner_? _You _have a chance, _Jadeite _has a chance, even Kunzite probably has a chance with Áine! But, Neph… he _doesn't _anymore. All he has are memories and a daughter to remember Val by."

Both men winced at that painful reminder, beginning to feel the shame that the Commander had mentioned. Jadeite began to feel it more so because in the days after learning Bellona was in a coma, he had wished with _everything _that he could have been the one in Nephrite position. Even if the man's wife had gone missing, he did have a daughter and his memories to keep him going until he found her. But now that's _all _he had of her and there was never a chance to find her again. Zoisite, on the hand, began to frown after a second or two. If dear Commander had said _something _to Nephrite about Valkyrie being with the Senshi, he would still have had his chance with her.

"Don't even think about it." Artemis said suddenly, a tightness returning to his voice. "I know you're going to point out that it's my fault that he doesn't have a chance and I already said that her death is looming over me. I am going to be making up for my mistakes the rest of my life to Jadeite, Nephrite, Endymion, and whoever the hell I've wronged or _will _wrong. Don't you think I'm suffering enough, Zoi? My doubts, fears, and regrets keep me up every single damn night. What else do you want from me?"

"You know what I want, Commander?" The European general stated. "I want everything in the clear right here and now. I want you to tell me everything else that you've been hiding."

The white haired man heaved a sigh and ran a hand through his hair. "Now isn't the time for that. We are on a barely secure landline, remember? You're lucky I've said all that I have."

Zoisite scowled and grip the sides of the end table again, the whites of his knuckles glaring at the room. "Who's fault is that, Commander? I have a secure connection to Headquarters on my laptop and you didn't contact me through that."

"Your laptop is off, idiot!" Artemis snapped. "You can't have a video conference when one of the parties doesn't respond!"

Zoisite frowned, opening his mouth to deny such a thing, but Jadeite walking closer and pointing to the laptop on the coffee table distracted him. The black device had become unplugged from its charger, no doubt during their festivities last night, and there was a blue light blinking, signifying a dead battery. "Fine. It is my fault that we are talking over a unsecured phone line. My laptop is dead." The man informed his superior tonelessly.

Jadeite smirked at the surly look on his companion's face and finally decided to speak up. "Commander, are you sure you won't tell us what else you've been hiding?"

"…Jadeite? That is _you_, right?" Artemis said hesitantly after a long pause. "How, uh, how much did you hear?"

"Yeah, it's me." The auburn-haired man rolled of his eyes. "And I think I heard most. Kind of hard not to when you're on speaker phone and your suite mate is yelling as well, actually."

"Great, just great." The man hissed. "Good going, Zoisite! The whole damn floor probably heard everything!"

"Don't be so damn dramatic!" Zoisite snapped back, his green eyes radiating fury. "The only reason Jadeite heard is because the adjourning door was open."

The Eastern General wisely pursed his lips to keep from mentioning that the door _hadn't _been open and he'd been woken up from a pizza and soda-induced sleep by their yelling because it'd been so loud. "Commander," he tried again, keeping his voice calm, "could you please tell us what else you've been hiding?"

"Now _isn't _the time." The man insisted heatedly. "I already said that. What I will tell you is Nephrite's contact information. He needs to be caught up on things; he insisted on it actually and he needs to be told everything before I arrive in Tokyo."

'_Well maybe the calm voice thing did work.'_ Jadeite mused, _'Not great but a little at least. Though, if I was--'_ "And when the hell are you going to arrive in Tokyo?" The general groaned at his comrade's tone. _'Okay. It didn't help Zoi at all.'_

"Soon. I'm getting everything ready." Artemis grumbled as he rubbed his forehead and winced at the pain pounding there. "It's not like I can just _leave_. I have to make sure someone is going preside over Headquarters first and then make sure I pack my documents, some clothes and personal belongings, and of course the stuff I'm going to bring for Nephrite. Then I bought this cute little thing for Rose that I need to pack too--"

Jadeite's smirk of amusement was quickly wiped away as Zoisite slammed his hands down on the end table, making the phone rattle ominously. "Things like that aren't important. Just make sure you have the documents that will help make sure your embezzling won't be discovered before bringing your sorry excuse of a commandership over here."

"What did you just say?" Artemis huffed in disbelief, almost falling out of his chair. "Do you remember who the hell you're talking to!?"

"Oh, I _know _who I'm talking to. _Artemis_, the most _incompetent _leader there ever was! Not to mention the _lousiest _excuse of a man that had _ever _existed."

"_WHAT?"_ Jadeite grimaced as he imagined all the complaints people were sure to phone in on this room as Commander's screech echoed. "_Zoisite!_ When I get to Tokyo, I'm going to kick your sorry ass all the way to Pluto!"

"I'll be waiting you lying, secretive _bastard!_"

"Oh, be sure I will you--!"

Jadeite could do not more than gawk as Zoisite picked up and threw the phone onto the floor. The angry man barely gave himself time to grab the jacket (which Jadeite was positive was _his_) before stalking to the door, opening it, and slamming it closed with all his might. _'Yep, definitely sure to get a lot of complaints. __**Great**__.'_

The man's eyes landed on the phone before he walked over and picked it up cautiously. "Commander? You still there?"

Jadeite didn't hear anything. No harsh breathing, no curses that were definitely banned from being said in front of Neph's daughter, and no furniture breaking. He groaned in aggravation, dropping the phone as he noticed the crack in the base of it. "Oh, hey, Commander. Don't worry, _I'm _not angry with you. I just want to know when I can see Bellona again but I'm not angry." He grumbled to the device before kicking it, watching as it sailed into the wall with a crash. "And don't worry about Zoi. He's just been stressed. You know, with the whole let's be a Super-General thing he's trying out since Kunzite disappeared. He should be fine. Eventually. I think he has what he'd normally call _'repressed feelings' _or whatever. He's just tired and frustrated because he found out that Endymion could have been with us years ago."

The general paused, groaning again. "I'm talking to a phone. A broken one at that. …I need to do something." He looked around Zoi's hotel suite slowly, taking in the sheer mess that had been left untouched, before turning back to his room. "No, sleep sounds better right now. Much better."

* * *

Artemis scowled as he slammed to phone down into its cradle. "When I get my hands on him…" He sighed suddenly, the heat going out of him, and buried his head in his arms. "Oh, what am I _doing_? Everything is crumbling around me. Valkyrie is dead and Bellona might as well me. Headquarters might collapse and or be discovered if I don't do serious damage control. Two generals are brokenhearted because of things _I've _kept from them. Another disappeared and deflected for Terra knows why but I'm positive I somehow made him leave. The last general thinks I'm some bozo masquerading as a leader. My King doesn't have a crown or even bloody knowledge of his heritage. Neither does My Queen and even better! There is something abnormal in Serenity's blood that doctors are curious about and I'm damn sure that it's her powers. Then Endymion's personally is dangerously emerging out of Darien. …And none of my generals know of the last two things because I'm too much of a damn coward to tell them."

The white-haired man lifted his head up slowly, looking around his office as if it held its answers. "And what have I done to stop or prevent any of that from happening? _Nothing_, that's what. Instead of being where I'm needed --where I've _been _needed-- I'm halfway around the world using Endymion's money to finance an endeavor he knows nothing about. I've long since gave up the chance for him to grow up like a king and I've let Serenity's guardian die just because I assumed she was a fraud. Zoisite's right. I **am **a goddamn failure and incompetent leader."

"Hmm. When you sound like that, what do you expect?"

Artemis froze, his breath catching in his throat in surprise, before he shook himself and took action. Stealthily one of his hands dropped into his lap before reaching up and pulling a hidden sword from underneath his desk. He slowly stood and turned in a circle, hands tight on the weapon, before he spotted the intruder in the corner of his room that held the least bit of light.

"Who are you?" He bit out as he lifted his hands and brandished the tip of his sword in the corner threateningly. "Show yourself at once."

The figure slowly stepped out, the shadows playing on its form until a woman wearing a black business suit was revealed. She bowed her head slightly, strands of long greenish-black hair sliding over her shoulder, before looking up and flashing the man a small smile. "I do believe you called for Pluto?"

The sword dropped onto the ground in a clatter as a burgundy light enveloped the woman before Artemis's astonished eyes.

* * *

Finished: Dec 22, 2008 9:00 PM

Posted: Dec 22, 2008 9:30 PM

1. **Selwyn (SIL- win) **means "fair; white + sun" in Welsh. He is indeed Serenity's full-blooded Solarian father --thus making her half-Solarian and cousin to both Cadeyrn and Áine.

2. Because I know I might have confused a few of you, Endymion having blue eyes then was kind of his acceptance of having a reincarnation. If you remember, last chapter he kept saying things like "we, this reincarnation and I." yet when he first came to be -so to speak- he was more like "me, me, me." _He _wanted to be the one to protect Serenity, _he_ would make sure that Bellona stayed away, etc. Now he accepts that Darien cares for Serena and could help him. Instead of two separate entities walking toward the hospital then, it was kind of both Darien and Endymion searching her out. Just Darien wasn't in complete control and didn't realize that someone else was in his body. Go figure, right?

Well, did you like the surprise entrance of our Outer Senshi? Hehe, bet you didn't expect that now, did you? And things are sure tense with the Generals and their Commander… I wonder how that will play off with Endymion's reappearance. Tsk Artemis! You are such a big coward! And, YAY!, for Silver Millennium memories; I really enjoy writing those and hope you enjoy reading them just as much.

Remember! The poll is closing when I post Ch. 25 so be sure that you get your vote in! Thank you for reading and reviewing everyone, hope your holidays are great!

Tiger Celeste.


	24. Chapter 24

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

Woo-hoo first '09 chapter! Here's to hoping this story ends soon so the next one can begin!

Hope you guys all had nice holidays and hope the new year is starting off well. Be sure to remember that I will be taking down my poll and giving revealing the results once the next chapter is posted. Also, I'm working on organizing this story so it _doesn't _drag on forever. I'll give you all an update when I get a clearer idea of how many chapters are left.

**Tabbykit:** Ah, well it's a relief that you got it! I was wondering there; I'm also glad that it answered your questions. Hehe, the memories are pretty fun to write too. I try to make everything more formal to match the era I want to create. Sometimes I'm not sure if that always happens though… Hmm. What _will _Artemis do?

**Bella:** Whoa, lots of suggests there. Lol. Hmm… I'm sorry to say that Seiya will not make any appearance in this series. I've never watched Stars so I'd be too afraid that I'd make him and the others too OOC. As for Uranus and Neptune, they won't be making a _physical _appearance until the next story, be it a sequel or prequel. And Hotaru's going to stay young. She just has to for this to all work out. Hmm… was that everything? I think it might have been…

**Valkyrie Celes:** I'm working on a projection date for the end. I'm hoping it's soon though, so it doesn't drag on like I said above. I hate when stories drag on and mine's kinda starting too… I hope you like how it turns out in any case though, I know what I want to happen then at least, lol.

**Butterfle:** Why, yes. Pluto is indeed still in a coma inside the hospital. Tricky woman, isn't she? Um, is there anything in particular that confuses you about Rei/Bellona or is it just a general thing? And, as for why/how Áine is a traitor… well, when you betray your friends, don't you feel like a traitor? She pretty much went on the wrong side, I guess you could say. She or someone else will go into detail about her actions eventually…

**Tenshi-Chikyuu:** Typos, ugh. I hate one-word typos too. Well, like I told Bella, I'm sorry to say that neither Neptune nor Uranus will make a physical appearance. Next story, though, I swear. I even have a rather good way to introduce them, as a matter of fact. Hehe, I so love it too.

Hmm… nothing much else to say besides hope you like this chapter and review! I like everyone's guesses to what's going on. Makes me happy and mischievous. Thanks to everyone that read and/or reviewed!

On with the story!

* * *

"_YOU!"_

The vicious hiss was all the warning Kunzite received before a shaking finger was suddenly thrust into his field of vision. "Yes, Zoicite…?" He drawled as he calmly took a few steps back, adopting a bored expression, "Is there something wrong?"

The Dark Kingdom general scowled, the finger still pointing at the taller man accusingly. "Don't pretend you don't know what you did! Where the hell did you do with Maerina, _bastard?_" He spat, a little smirk on his face as he used the Terran word the now-deceased Jupiter loved to say; it felt like he was rubbing in her death a little more each time.

Kunzite rose an eyebrow. "Nothing. That pathetic youma was your responsibility. How can you be sure you didn't _misplace _it? After all, you've been off gloating about Jupiter's sacrifice and claiming how _you _killed her. The youma could have wandered off on her own anytime, you never knowing."

The blonde general narrowed his eyes as he lowered his hand. "It was in _my _battle, making it _my _victory when Jupiter destroyed herself. Besides, who even cares how that scum died? A death is a death. Now tell me what you've done with my youma!"

"I told you." The white-haired man replied calmly, "Nothing. Perhaps Queen Beryl finally realized how useless she was and did away with her. Even you have to know that a creature such as her had no rights to be nothing more than a Senshi-distraction."

"Oh, please." Zoicite scoffed, a shrill laugh echoing in the darkness, "That shows how simple you are. Our esteemed Queen would _never _destroy Maerina because she had been closing in on the core of that forsaken planet. That is Beryl's _goal_! Now I only know of one other person vying for my Queen's attention and that is you! Admit you did something to Maerina to destroy my chances of rising above you!"

Kunzite didn't take the bait. "Perhaps her goals have changed. Tell me, Zoicite." He drawled as he narrowed his eyes menacingly, "How long have you know that reaching the Earth's core was Beryl's plan? A Terran day? A week? A _month_? How long do you think she will even keep this plan? Keep _us _around as we fail in her goals and desires?"

The general opened his mouth only to blanch as he recalled how the Queen hadn't mentioned reaching the core of Earth until three months ago; the first word of it after untold _years_ ofoperation. Then there was how she had talked of sealing Jadeite just before he was destroyed by the Senshi. She _would _have known it, he knew without a doubt, because that first general had failed everything terribly. No excess energy, no Senshi defeated, and each youma was destroyed no matter how strong they were.

"No." He hissed in reply, stopping himself from stepping back. He would not let this man intimidate him; that was his plan and he would not stand for it. "The others were fools. I am nothing like them. I have succeeded when neither Nephrite nor Jadeite did. _I _have gathered an abundance of energy with my attacks, _I _have made progress in reaching the core of that planet, _I _have defeated a Senshi!"

Kunzite almost smiled as he heard the tightly suppressed fear and desperation in the general's voice. "Yes. Yet what happens when you do not progress any longer? When the Senshi defeat youma upon youma? When Beryl's plans change and reaching the core of the planet means nothing more than a speck of grime on her nails?" Slowly he was leaning forward, towering over the man. "The Senshi will be merciful when they destroy you, Zoicite. Beryl will _celebrate _with your screams. Will delight as your flesh is torn from your bones and drink wine in festivity as you beg her to finally kill you. She will prolong your agony just so _she _can enjoy it longer."

He stopped next to Zoicite's ear, feeling the slightest of tremors run through the general's frame. His green eyes were wide, unseeing as his mind flickered with the images Kunzite's words were creating. "And you know what? Beryl can prolong your torture for _eternity_. We are bound by our namesakes. When we die our souls become imprisoned inside _stones_." The white-haired man spat, "She can revive us anytime she chooses. And she will. _Continuously_. Have no doubts."

"It--it's not possible." The blonde finally stuttered as he frantically tried to salvage any control. His Queen would never do that do him. She loved him too much to want him to suffer. The _Senshi _were to be tortured in such a manner, never him. He-- he was Beryl's _favorite_; she would never kill the one that was on his way to discovering the ruins of the Terran Golden Kingdom in the core. Right?

"Can you _not _hear their screams; Jadeite and Nephrite's?" Kunzite whispered darkly. "Beryl revives them every so often just to _mercilessly _torture them in her chambers for days on end. I know you've seen their stones, Zoicite. Two of them. One a green-white and the other a brown-gray. They sit beside her on her throne; a constant reminder of the power she holds over us. The power to destroy us like Terran bugs in her fist--"

Zoicite gave a choked cry, disappearing in a blaze of Sakura blossoms before the white-haired man could continue. Kunzite sighed, running a hand through his hair even as he clinched his jaw. The darkness was stirring in him as a result of his words. Usually he would never stoop to doing such a thing but it was time to see where Zoicite's loyalties lie. When the time comes, he would either cooperate or continue to be the zealous fool he was.

And there was truth in his own words; the man truly _was _a fool if he couldn't hear the screams. Beryl was pure evil, delighting in the misfortunes of others, and that was a hard fact. And, unfortunately for the generals, she _was _in possession of their namesakes. The white-haired man sighed again as he headed back to his chamber for a short nap. It had taken days to learn where Maerina had been stationed and, to his misfortune, she'd managed to uncover more than he'd expected. So, for the sake of his King, he'd killed her before painstakingly covering every inch of the ocean she had destroyed in her search. He had to be ready for Beryl's next strike --whenever that may be-- and he couldn't do that unless he replenished his energy. He took a second to look behind him thoughtfully before shaking his head. _'I only pray that Zoicite mulls over my words and sees the truth in them. Otherwise he will have to be destroyed. Soon.' _

* * *

"Excuse me, ma'am?" A melodic voice questioned as its owner demurely folded her hands on top of the yellow counter she was leaning against.

The Secretary of Juuban High School's Head Office, Hitomi Tachibana, looked up with a polite smile. Before her was a woman with matching brown hair and eyes, soft facial angles, and slight make-up; she looked like the common, everyday woman. Yet, looking closer, Hitomi saw that the woman's eyes seemed to be flecked with silver and her appearance was completely flawless; her hair was done up in a stylish French twist and her outfit consisted of pink blouse and gray pencil skirt that looked like they were specially made for her. _'Definitely not your everyday woman.'_

"Welcome to Juuban High, my name is Mrs. Tachibana." She finally greeted, "How can I help you today?"

"Hello. I need to speak with the person in charge of student registering." The woman answered, her smile and voice just as polite. "It concerns my daughter."

The secretary nodded, pushing back her chair and standing up. "You're in luck, ma'am. Mr. Hirakata hasn't left for the day yet." She paused, gesturing toward one of the few plastics chair beside a fake tree the principal insisted they should have to seem more welcoming. "It will just take a few moments but if you'd care to sit down, feel free to."

The woman looked over her shoulder at the aforementioned seats but instant disgust flashed through her eyes at seeing gum stuck onto the sides of one of them. She turned back around with an easy smile, however. "I do not mind standing, Mrs. Tachibana."

"All right. I'll return in just a moment." Hitomi answered before walking down the hall a few paces away from her desk. She walked past two doors before making a left, feeling the woman's stare on the back of her neck all the while. _'Odd lady.'_ Passing a few more of the identical brown doors, she came to one marked _**'Yori Hirakata, Registrar.'**_She knocked, peeking her head through the door, "Mr. Hirakata, there's a woman here that needs to speak with you. Something concerning her daughter."

Yori, a man well into his forties with gray hair, frowned as he looked up from his computer. "Did she say who she was? Or who her daughter was, Hitomi?"

The secretary shook her head. "No and she doesn't have an appointment either. But I figured since it was already the end of the day and you had no one else coming in…"

The man sighed, getting up from his worn swivel chair. "I'll go greet her." He quickly navigated to the front of the building, Hitomi trailing behind him curiously. He grinned as he spotted the familiar woman in front of the counter. "Ms. Kino! What a pleasure it is to see you again! To what do I owe this visit?"

The brown-headed woman smiled in reply. "It is good to see you as well, Mr. Hirakata. But I'm afraid that I am not coming with good news. I am here to withdraw my daughter, Makoto, from school."

Yori frowned as he leaned his hip against the counter. "She only enrolled here a few months ago, though, if I'm not mistaken. …Is she having problems? We could always work something out with the principal or counselor if that is the case."

"No, no." Ms. Kino smiled again, though it was touched with sadness. "I am being transferred for work again. I had hoped we would have been able to stay longer this time but it seems like we won't be able to."

Yori nodded, an understanding smile on his face in reply. "Ah, well, let's take this matter into my office, shall we?" He pushed off the counter and eagerly waved the woman ahead. "I believe we can work everything out much easier there."

* * *

He'd been minding his own business, calmly walking around Tokyo for no reason other than not wanting to be cooped up with Jadeite any longer. Not when both of them were ready to get into another fight --perhaps this one more violent and bloodier than the last. A scowl crossed the man's face briefly, _'Of course, Jadeite isn't exactly the one I'm mad at. __**Five **__years! How could Commander have lied to us for _that _long?'_

And, because he was minding his own business, Zoisite didn't see the petite girl as he turned a corner until it was too late. His eyes widened in alarm and disbelief seconds before he and a peculiarly blue-haired girl crashed into one another. The girl immediately scrambled to her feet, apologies and stutters abound, as she hurriedly looked around for the belongings she and her victim had lost.

Zoisite, in complete _gentlemanly _fashion, only gaped at the girl as she picked up the scattered belongings. He couldn't believe his luck. It was unfathomable, unprecedented, it was… _'Albreda(1) .'_ He shook himself out of his stupor as she grabbed a thin book to his right. "Oh! Sorry. I guess I was a little dazed there." He explained hurriedly, as he rushed to his feet and picked up anything left over. "I apologize for not seeing you. I was lost in thoughts."

The girl blushed, ducking her head at his smile and laugh. "It--it's all right. It was my fault as well. I was looking at my watch and walking much too fast." She sighed in a sad manner, despite there being a little smile on her face. "I suppose I've taken after one of my friends more than I'd thought."

It was only when the girl looked up, her eyes suddenly narrowed in curiosity, did Zoisite realize he had a problem. There was a certain Dark Kingdom general running around with _his _face and Albreda was an active Senshi. He almost winced as loose strands of his hair fell into his face: the hair dye was already fading out. _'That's what I get for listening to Jed and buying convenience store dye.'_ He thought angrily, taking into account that instead of dark black hair now he had a dark brown. It wasn't back to being blonde, thankfully, but still… _'No, I won't walk away. I just… I need to talk to her. I miss Albreda too much to let some cheap hair dye get in the way.'_

"Do…I know you… from somewhere?" She asked hesitantly, adjusting the three books she'd placed in the crook of one of her arms. "Per-perhaps the library or school?"

He grinned. _'The library. Same Albry.' _"No, I'm afraid not. I've only been in this country for a short time. Business trip."

"_Oh_." She whispered, her eyes straying down to his hands. He was still holding two of the library books she'd been looking for mentions of Serena or the Senshi in. "Um…" She whispered, blushing lightly, "Do-do you think I could get those back? They are very crucial for a …project I am working on."

"Hmm?" Zoisite looked down, laughing as he saw the books he held. "Sorry. Looks like my mind has gone on vacation for the day. Here, let me put them away for you." He said quickly, walking over to her side. "Your hands are already full enough to try to juggle these in one-handed."

She smiled thankfully as he flipped open her brown shoulder bag and placed the two library books inside. Just before he closed it, she spotted something that caused her to frown. "Hey… wait. This isn't mine." The green-eyed man blanched as he saw his soul mate lift his PDA out. The same PDA that reacted to Endymion's presence; the one that contained every contact for Headquarters --listing everyone's _real _name; the one that listed _Nephrite's _upcoming meeting; and who knows _what _else. The only thing worse that she could have gotten a hold of is his laptop! "This is fascinating." She mumbled, turning the black object over this way and that in her hand. "It looks like a PDA but much more advanced than any I've seen. Expandable memory card slot. Looks to be a touch-screen, so probably a stylus function as well. No doubt an address book, appointment calendar, to-do list, and a notepad program. A microphone so standard phone capabilities without a doubt. An earphone jack so maybe a music player? Is… that a camera too? Wow…"

"It also has the standard alarm clock, timer, and calculator. It's both WiFi and Bluetooth-enabled. Has complete wireless internet capabilities, _much _better than any of the other smart-phones out there. It doesn't have a stylus function because it's a capacitive touch-screen; which, as you no doubt know, means you have to use bare skin. The virtual keyboard is a full QWERTY keyboard with spell check, predictive text, and a dynamic dictionary that learns new words easily. The camera also doubles as a webcam but unfortunately that is only in developmental stages. I want to use it for video conferencing. I'm also slowing adding maps from any place known to man on Earth and GPS." Zoisite listed off with a grin. One day he'd be able to tell her about the dark-energy scanner he'd placed in it and the three-dimensional projection he was working on.

The blue-haired woman looked up, yet another blush on her face. "S-so it's yours." She quickly thrust the object out to him. "I'm sorry! I could have sworn it was my graphing calculator when I picked it up."

He laughed as he took it, taking care in placing it in his jacket's inside pocket. "No worries. Besides I've always wondered what you'd…" He stopped, his eyes widening. "What a stranger would say about it."

"You… created it?" She questioned curiously, not noticing his slip, as she slid one of the smallest books she held into an open space in her bag. She blinked when she looked up to see his nod. "That is very impressive. Is-is that why you are in Japan? You're pitching it to an electronics company?"

His brow furrowed. "No. I'm still developing my art, I guess you could say. No pitching in my near future. I work for a, uh, private …company." He almost winced as he began stumbling over his words, "They, uh, are the reason I--I'm in Tokyo. With a colleague of mine."

She tilted her head slightly and he could see how fascinated she was by him --or at least by his work. Either way he felt a million times better than he had in years. He was finally talking to his soul mate; how could he _not _be happy? "Are you an inventor for this company of yours?" She asked, her eyes watching him raptly.

He shrugged while internally doing a jig at all the attention she was giving him. "In a way, yes. I have no real title or job description. I help maintain any electronic devices, I build things," He tapped his pocket, "like my PDA. I even metalwork. I'm a technologist. Engineer. Many things, really."

She shook her head lightly. "I don't think I've ever meant someone quite like you before."

"And you never will again, my lady. I'm one of a kind." He said with a grin, dipping into a short bow.

"I guess you are." She giggled, bringing a hand up to cover her mouth. "I don't suppose you'd ever market one of those devices for the public though, would you?" She asked after a moment. "I'd love to have one."

He shrugged again. "Maybe. For you." He smiled innocently as her face blossomed into a blush again, choking lightly at his blatant flirting. _'Ah. It's been so long since I could tease you like this Albry. I've missed you and that red face of yours so much…'_

Zoisite watched as his companion opened her mouth, eager to know what she would say in response, before frowning as a shrill beeping filled the air. His eyes narrowed as he saw Albreda blanch before rummaging through her bag, her hand reappearing with a blue square-shaped device quickly. It almost looked like that mini-computer she'd had so long ago but once secretive glance told him it wasn't.

"Oh, no. I only have a little time before I'm late." She mumbled, biting her bottom lip worriedly. "I knew I shouldn't have stayed after to ask my teacher about the upcoming final…" Her head snapped up to him.

He interrupted her before she could say anything. "Go ahead. Perhaps we will finish our conversation another day before I leave. I would like it very much, as a matter of fact."

She smiled softly as she adjusted her books again. "I would to. It was nice meeting you. I only wish it hadn't been under such… volatile… circumstances."

"I agree." He laughed lightly. "I apologize for not paying attention again, by the way."

"No problem. Hopefully I'll see you later so we _can _finish this discussion. Good-bye."

"Bye." Zoisite idly played with the object in his hands, feeling it slip between two fingers before bouncing to the next, as he watched Albreda walk away. Or, he thought as he looked down at the Juuban High School identification card he was playing with, rather _Ami Mizuno_.

It was Albreda without a doubt though; he was positive of it. She didn't feel _incomplete _the way Bellona did when he'd seen her at the arcade. No, instead she was exactly the same as she ever had been with only a few changes here and there. Of course, it's wasn't as if he, Commander, or the other generals _expected _anyone to be the same but… in most cases they were very similar. Ami was just another example of that.

He grinned suddenly as he kept studying the card. _'As for me… Looks like old "doigts chanceux" (a/n: "Lucky Fingers" in French) still has it.'_ His smile faded after a moment, _'Though, I don't think that's exactly a good thing. Tomorrow. Tomorrow I will return Ami's card. It is, after all, the only right thing to do after I …borrowed it.'_

* * *

"Here you are, Ms. Kino. Sorry about the long wait." Yori stated with an apologetic smile as he handed over two document-sized vanilla envelopes to the woman standing in the front office once more. "The principal wanted to make sure everything was in order before he sealed them."

"It is quite all right, Mr. Hirakata." Came the polite reply as brunette took the envelopes, her eyes fixed on the school's seals that kept them closed. When she looked up she was wearing a grateful smile. "Thank you very much doing this for me. I know that handing records such as these directly to the parent is not a common policy but I did not know what else to do…"

The man waved a careless hand. "It was my pleasure. Besides, I understand and so did the principal as soon as I explained your situation. He understands the difficulties of being a single parent."

"It seems silly though, doesn't it? To not even know the name of the school Makoto will be attending." She questioned sadly before shaking her head, "Thank you very managing to convince the principal, as well. I just… I am so stressed with everything and I cannot get a hold of Makoto since our phone is still not connected. I myself would have waited to tell you the school's information but I want my daughter to begin school as soon as I arrive. But I know that there was also a chance the files would have become lost in the mail. That happened several times during our previous moves, as you know from the lack of earlier files, and I did not that to happen once more."

The Registrar nodded slowly, knowing the truth in the words. The school had been forced to begin a completely new record for Makoto when her old ones never showed up, despite Ms. Kino continually saying she'd watched the secretary mail them herself. "Of course, of course. Just promise me you will give the new school the files as soon as possible."

She nodded quickly. "That goes without saying, Mr. Hirakata. I do not want Makoto to miss anymore school than she has this week. Oh, that reminds me I must stop by the attendance office to explain--"

"I took care of it." Yori interrupted with a grin. "I told Mrs. Guino about Makoto moving ahead of you to secure the apartment for you. She made a notation of it on her records. Of which are now in your hands."

The surprised look quickly faded from Ms. Kino's face until it turned into a soft one. "Thank you so much, Mr. Hirakata. You are being quite helpful."

The man shrugged, a light blush dusting his cheeks, as he rubbed the back of his gray-speckled hair. "It was my pleasure, as I said. Besides, I am sorry to hear that Makoto was leaving. She was a fine student."

The forgotten secretary quickly disguised her snort with a cough, shuffling through her purse innocently as Yori looked at her. She knew it was courteous to be polite (besides Mr. Hirakata having a crush on the elegant woman and trying to get on her good side, no doubt) but she'd seen Makoto Kino's files herself. In only her first month at the school, the girl had gotten into no less than twelve fights or disagreements; five of which resulted in injury of either both parties or Makoto's opponents. _'Though three of those _did _involve upper classman who'd been known to tease children from Juuban Primary School. That might have started the fights.' _The woman thought to herself. _'And Makoto had seemed to calm down some when she became friends with Ami Mizuno and Serena Tsukino.'_

Academically wise, however, Makoto had continually been below-par and that was a fact. She was so below-par that she should have already had a meeting with the principal and counselor to discuss the future of her academics. She'd also flat-out refused to wear the standard Juuban High uniform just because she "didn't want to", punched her locker so hard it became tented, hardly ever turned in homework assignments, continually skipped or cut class, had a habit of falling asleep in the ones she _did _attend, and who knows what else. _'I swear, it's like that girl wanted to get in trouble on purpose.'_

"I really must be leaving," Ms. Kino began apologetically, "I have much to prepare for and pack still…"

"Oh! Right." Yori coughed nervously. "The final bell of the day just rang a little bit ago, didn't it? Well, it's always nice to see you again, Ms. Kino. I wish you luck on your new promotion and the transfer."

Ms. Kino slipped the envelopes into her purse before bowing slightly. "Thank you, Mr. Hirakata. Good day. To both of you." She added as she nodded her head toward the secretary.

"Let me get the door for you!" Yori said, hurrying ahead of the woman. "Have a nice day, Ms. Kino." The brunette smiled demurely, dipping her head once more. In two heartbeats she was heading down the hall, the registrar staring after her for another minute before sighing and closing the door shut.

As she heard the door shut, the woman fought not to roll her eyes as she peeked at her purse to make sure the envelopes were still there. With quick steps, she impatiently walked out of the school, avoiding both straggling teachers and students alike. _'Finally,' _she thought as she pushed open the last door, _'I had forgotten how bothersome this place was. And the learning system, it has become incredibly lax.' _A smirk played in her brown eyes._ 'Or perhaps that is just the Terran learning system.'_

She sauntered through the Juuban High School gates and down the sidewalk, low black sling-back heels clicking with each step. Once she was positive she was out of sight of the entire school, she pulled the beige purse off her shoulder before grabbing an envelope and shoving the straps back on. _'This purse,' _she almost sighed, _'I am not accustomed to carrying belongings in such a matter.'_

She glanced down at herself, observing the Terran attire adorning her. It certainly wasn't what she would chose to wear -_ever_- but Áine claimed that all the garbs she owned were made of the finest materials available; "designer clothing", she'd called them. And while she had no confidence in Áine's words, in the end she had no choice but to wear them because she needed to pretend to _be _a Terran. Truthfully, it _had _helped that Luna had continually assured her that the clothing was indeed the very best money could buy and was appropriate for any royal, including one "as esteemed as the Princess of the _entire _Silver Millennium and the one that would led us into a new age".

A slight brush of wind made the woman shiver out of her thoughts. She studied the envelope she held in her hand for a moment before sliding a sharp fingernail along the top and opening it, completely bypassing the school's seal. "Well, let's see how Valkyrie did, shall we?"

She flickered through a few papers, her feet instinctively moving to where she needed to go. "Ah. That renowned warrior spirit shone through, I see. _'Caused physical harm to a eleventh grade student (name undisclosed at request of guardians) in the form of a broken arm on August twentieth.'_" The woman shook her head. "And if I recall correctly, that was only days after I enrolled you. Such behavior is unbecoming of a lady, Valkyrie."

Another smirk danced in her eyes as she moved onto more information, eager to know how the Jovian had progressed. "A notation from an instructor? _'It is a joy to have Miss Kino in my physical education class. She is a truly well-rounded player and every sport we have participated in, she excels. These include soccer, softball, aerobics, and cross country running for this year thus far. Despite Miss Kino's abilities, however, she has problems with the other classmates. For example, the class participated in a lesson of self-defense during the aerobics unit and while Miss Kino preformed a high-level defense maneuver, she used it to harm another student. The student was only shaken and sent to the Nurse's Office as a precaution but it is advised that Miss Kino be spoken with regarding the incident. She refused to speak with myself on why she had harmed the student, going so far as to storm out of the gymnasium in a rage.'_

"To think I had had uncertainties on whether she would be able to behave properly or not." The woman murmured quietly, thumbing through the pages a few more times to see that there were several other similar notations on the warrior's misconduct. Her disrespect toward teachers and the rest of the school administration, the inefficient testing levels, and the unruly behavior toward fellow pupils; the list seemed endless. _'I do believe she surpassed all my expectations.'_ She thought, sliding the sheets back into the envelope. She fished the other one out of Áine's purse and took a few minutes to review it as well before shaking her head. _'Grade and attendance records. Both very shameful indeed.'_ She paused, a brief thought filtering through her mind before dismissing it as irrelevant to her planning. _'Albreda would never continue such behavior. Willingly or not.'_

The brunette glanced up, making sure she wasn't going to walk into any of the foul Terrans, before spotting a waste basket on the side of the street. She ambled over to the object, hovering the information and envelopes carelessly over it. _'Had I known you were following out your portion of my planning so flawlessly, Valkyrie, perhaps I would have interfered and saved you.' _A slight smile tilted up her lips. _'A noble gesture, indeed. Yet where has it gotten you? Your self sacrifice has destroyed your chances of finding your forsaken Terra family that you cherished and no more can you be reunited with Serenity.'_

She was just about to let go of the documents, determined to do away with the Jovian warrior once and for all, when she stopped. _'That---that is very possible, is it not? I do have possession of the emerald. Necromancy is, after all, not a foreign practice to me.'_

She smiled, snatching the documents back and replacing them inside the purse. Yes; as soon as she dismantled the barrier still effective around the emerald, Valkyrie would rise once more. Her smile widened and if she was a lesser woman, there would have been a giddy bounce in her step as she headed for "Lady Luna and Lady Rei's" shrine. As it was, she didn't even bat an eyelash at the distasting number of steps at the shrine before she closed her eyes and was standing at the very top of them.

Uncaring if there were witnesses or not --though a quick glance told her there wasn't-- she pulled out the Luna Pen and twirled it between her fingers. The closer to the shrine house she became, the more her appearance changed. Her hair become longer, lighter; her stature shifted until she stood a few inches shorter and thinner; her complexion lightened before a crescent insignia burst into form on her forehead. When she stepped onto the last step to the house, her hair burst out of its stylish twist and arranged itself into the Lunarian royal hairstyle automatically. Regrettably the Terran garbs remained but that would be remedied soon enough.

"_Princess Serenity!" _The door slammed open as Luna and Rei appeared, a quiet Ami and Minako feet behind them. "Did everything transpire correctly, Your Highness?" Luna asked breathlessly. "Are you injured in any way? _Oh! _I knew I should have gone with you. It was my responsibility to--"

"Lady Luna." Princess Serenity interrupted gently as she stopped in front of the guardian. "I am quite all right. The Spirit of Selene was protecting me as She always does. I apologized if I worry you so greatly. I simply felt it was my own _sole _responsibility to amend this situation. If I had been here sooner then my guardian would not have had to die such a death." She peered up, her eyes widening innocently. "You understand, do you not, Lady Luna?"

The dark-haired woman sighed. "Of course, Your Highness. It was very noble of you to do such a thing for Jupiter. Now, _please_, come inside. It is drawing late and the coldness with arrive!"

"Yes. Perhaps some tea for us?" The royal asked as she was quickly waved in, Rei already being shoved toward the kitchen by Luna for her request. She passed by Áine and saw the dark emotion in the woman's blue eyes. She allowed herself to wink mockingly. "Please join us, Lady Minako. We have hardly spoken or seen one another this week." Her smile widened as the woman narrowed her gaze menacingly, her smile and actions stiff as she moved to sit beside Ami without a word. _'I wonder what ails her as such.'_ She pondered, a slight smirk in her silver eyes. _'I wonder indeed.'_

* * *

Ami bit her lip as she sat down her teacup on the low table before her, stealthily looking around the room as her hands dropped into her lap. On the other side of the table and seemingly across the room, Princess Serenity --now back to her pearl-laced gown-- and Luna were in deep conversation. On what, she did not know but if she had to guess it was concerning either Makoto or Serena. Rei was sitting beside the duo, calming drinking her tea while pretending not to listen. Minako, on the other hand, had quickly finished her drink before moving to the window and staring out like it had all the answers to her questions.

Seeing that no one was paying attention to her, she calmly moved and leaned against the wall a few feet from her back and pulled out her Mini-Computer from her subspace pocket. She drew her knees up, thankful her uniform skirt was so long, before flipping open the lid. She took a second to type in her password before the screen loaded and she spotted the file she wanted. It was a news video, uploaded off her computer at home. As the video enlarged, she took a second to adjust the volume and draw her legs up tighter before she pressed play.

"…_**The city is still reeling with the death of Sailor Jupiter. Now in other news, we are bring you an update to a story we originally covered a week ago. A man, now identified as Tokyo native Jirou Fukui, was found unconscious and in critical condition beside his car early November tenth. Once Fukui regained consciousness, he was disoriented but immediately claimed to have been attacked by an armed man. Now Fukui is claiming something else entirely."**_

Before Ami's eyes, a miniature close up of a man dressed in a plaid button-down shirt appeared, behind him were doors marked with something she couldn't make out. But, thanks to her mother's job, she had long ago memorized what it said: Tokyo General. Main Entrance.

"_**Yeah. I thought I was crazy too, you know?" **_The man laughed lightly on the video. _**"All I know is that one minute I was minding my own business, trying to keep breathing, and the next thing I know the guy frekin' shows up at the door! I almost --beep-- myself thinkin' he was back to finish me off but he just walked in, looked me in the eye, and frekin' **_bowed_.__** He apologized, saying I had reminded him of some man that'd tried to rape the woman --he'd been carrying a woman that night, you know-- and had attacked rashly."**_The man's eyes got larger and wondrous all of a sudden,_**"Then --I **_**swear **_**to you!-- he started to frekin' glow! It was some scary --beep--. I musta passed out or somethin' because all I know is that I woke up the next morning **_**completely **_**healed. The doctors were staring at me like I was a fre---"**_

The video cut off mid-word, ushering in two news reporters --one male, the other female. _**"There you have it." **_The female began,_**"Fukui now claims his attacker was also his **_**savior **_**and preformed a phenomenal recovery. When asked if he would continue to press charges, he had this to say."**_

The man appeared again before Ami's calculating eyes. _**"Are you kidding me? That guy saved my life, no doubts about it. From what I remember, I said some pretty --beep-- up things just because I'd gotten into a fight and ended up drinking. Had he said the things I did about him and that lady, I'd of done the same --beep-- thing he did. I sure wouldn't have saved him, though. But he saved me. I ain't gonna have no manhunt out for him or press charges or nothing. I'm not even gonna tell anyone what he looked like either. We're even in my book and we're gonna stay that way."**_

Ami's lips pursed into a firm line as the reporters reappeared, this time the man speaking. _**"When asked for a comment, Tokyo Police confirmed that the charges and search for the attacker had indeed been dropped. Tokyo General refused to comment on either the man's story or his miraculous recovery." **_

"_**It seems that this mysterious man will remain a mystery."**_The woman stated, shaking her head, _**"Now let's check in with the weather…"**_

The video ended but Ami paid no heed as possibilities whirled in her mind. She had first seen the news report Monday during breakfast but had not thought anything of it. But, as time wore on, little things began to stick out. By lunch time that same day, she had scoured all her sources to gain a copy of the video to analyze and re-watch. Since then, she had slowly been forming a theory.

The man had been found early November tenth, four a.m. according to police reports. Several of the other reports she obtained stated that most believe he'd been lying there for some time before being spotted. By its self, none of the information seemed very important but when you factored in that early November tenth, according to Rei, was _also _when the mysterious so-called husband of Serena came and took her away, it gained a whole new meaning.

Rei said the man knocked her unconscious before walking away, Serena in his arms. The victim on the news video had said his attacker had been _carrying _a _woman_. It fit, there was no doubt about it, but it had still been inconclusive. That is until she added in the fact that the victim had claimed his attacker had started _glowing_. A superhuman ability and one that Rei claimed the man's eyes had undergone. Glowing, flashing eyes; changing from blue to gold.

Ami bit her lip again as she closed the video file before bringing up a modified map of Tokyo. On it was a red line from her present location, the Cherry Hill Temple, to where Jirou Fukui had been found beside his car. It was almost perfectly straight. The man, whomever he was, had had a destination when he left with Serena that early morning. And she was willing to bet everything that it _wasn't _the Dark Kingdom's dimension.

The bluenette squeezed her eyes shut and rubbed her forehead with a free hand. Now though, thanks to the information Serena had revealed to her, she was confused more than ever. Before the visit, she had had numerous possibilities and theories lined up. Anything from the man looking for the other Senshi to him heading for some secret rendezvous point with Dark Kingdom youmas and or generals. But all that was destroyed with one little piece of information: Darien _found _Serena that night and took her to his home.

'_Okay. Let's get this straight.' _Ami took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. She flickered her eyes over the occupants over the room, grateful yet unsurprised to see none of the paying attention to her still. _'A badly injured Serena was taken away from Rei by an unknown man. While heading toward an equally unknown destination, he came across an intoxicated Jirou Fukui. Jirou readily admits to insulting the woman his attacker was carrying, thus provoking the attack. Sometime after knocking Jirou unconscious, the man… left Serena? In any case, she came into Darien's care and he claims to have found her lying on the ground somewhere.'_

It didn't make any sense in the least. Why would this strange man attack Rei, claiming a handful of things and demanding an _apology _along the way, attack a drunken man because he _insulted _Serena, then just _leave _her somewhere for Darien to find? It was ludicrous. _'Unless…' _She gasped inaudibly as a thought stuck her. _'Unless Darien was __**lying **__and he did not find Serena at all. What if, instead, she had been __**given **__to him? This 'rescuer', for lack of a better word, of Serena's could have deemed that keeping her with him was unsafe so he relinquished her into Darien's care.'_

It was a stretch but also very possible. Darien had, uncharacteristically she might add, been concerned about Serena. Given their rocky relationship, visiting once or twice would have been reasonable but Serena had implied she had a hard time making him _**leave**_. _'When I told Serena I never would have thought he would stay there that long, I truly meant it. But if he was being forced or-or __**ordered **__to watch over her…'_ With her brow crinkled in thought, Ami rapidly typed in this new theory and all the supporting evidence she could remember. _'Negligence of usual routine (including education which the man highly values), spending long hours at the hospital, unusual amounts of worry and protectiveness, Serena claimed he took care of her at his apartment, and… yesterday, when I questioned Motoki on his injuries, he claimed that he and Darien had gotten into a brawl because said man hadn't wanted Serena to go to the hospital.'_

The bluenette frowned as she reread everything. If she was honest with herself, there _was _some suspicious evidence but… to link _Darien _as an _accomplice_? Wasn't that simply pointing fingers at the closest available person --which Darien _was_. _'Besides,' _Ami thought to herself, _'wouldn't the man have to trust Darien to leave Serena --his supposed __**wife**__-- in his care? I would think that the first insulting argument between the two would have dispelled any trust in Darien's capacity to care for Serena.' _A heavy sigh escaped Ami's lips before she realized it, _'Then there's the matter of exactly __**who **__this man is and what his real connection to Serena is.'_

That in itself was the real mystery. Ami had already determined that if this 'rescuer' had been lying to Rei about Serena being his wife and everything else, he wouldn't have attacked Jirou Fukui because he insulted her. _'No.'_ she thought with a nod, _'Instead he would have continued on without paying any attention in the least. Yet he didn't and Jirou could have easily died had his attacker not interfered and saved him. Which brings me to what Jirou claimed the man had said. According to him, a memory of an attempted rape was what, ultimately, caused the attack. …If the woman that night truly was Serena, which I'm almost positive it was, that meant she had almost been violated in such a manner before. But I know that has never happened in __**this **__lifetime.'_

So that was it. The only _logical _explanation she could find (and ruling out the possibility of the attacker lying _or _Serena not telling anyone) for this attempted rape was that it had happened in the Silver Millennium. As for the man himself, he _had _to have known Serena in that lifetime and remembered her in _this _one. Ami bit her lip anxiously. _'And, based on his actions, he has to genuinely care for Serena. He was so willing to protect her from Rei, from Jirou, possibly from __**everyone**__. That doesn't say that he was a random stranger back then or even a simple acquaintance. It said that he had a deep relationship with her. Like… like a _marital _one.'_

The girl sighed as she finally closed her mini-computer with a soft click. She didn't know what she was going to do; already she'd been forced to lie to Serena. Or, at least, she'd purposely left out pieces of information the other day when she visited the girl in the hospital. Like the fact her supposed husband had had flashing eyes. It was paranoid on her part, she knew that for a fact, but she was worried that if Serena saw the news report and knew that her "husband" had such a strange ability as well, she would have connected the dots. And that couldn't happen for the sake of the girl's health.

Before Serena found out, she had to gather more information herself and stealthily question people. On its own accord, an image of the man from earlier popped into Ami's mind, making her blush. _'That isn't what I meant about questioning people! He has nothing to do with this!'_ She chided herself mentally but still she couldn't help but think back to the encounter. He had looked… _handsome _with his dark brown hair and green eyes and he'd been so interesting; she blushed harder. _'No! No! Focus; I have to question people for Serena! Not o-_ogle a _man!'_

"Lady Ami? Are you ill? You look rather red."

She snapped her head up sharply, horrified as she saw all the occupants of the room staring at her curiously. She could feel the embarrassed heat flushing into her cheeks and neck the longer they stared and she ducked her head. "N-no," She squeaked, "I am quite fine, Your Highness. Just thinking of something."

Faux-Serenity stared at the petite girl little longer, an innocently inquisitive look in her silver eyes before she pursed her lips slightly. "It concerns… _Serena_, does it not?"

"Y-yes." She squeaked again, flinching internally as she saw Luna and Rei's exasperated looks toward her. She sent a glance at Minako, however, when she saw the woman was just looking at her curiously. At least someone else didn't seem completely devoted to the idea of the girl being a traitor.

"Lady Ami," Faux-Princess Serenity said softly, "I applaud your …honor… of the friendship you believe you held with this Serena but sometimes you have to accept things are never as you expect them to be. I, for one, had expected my guard to still be in proper condition when I arrived. Yet instead I discovered one has died a most tragic death. It is the same with Serena; you believe she was a friend and instead we must accept she is quite the opposite."

Ami dipped her head in respect to the princess's words but mostly to hide the watering of her eyes. "Yes, of course Your Highness. I apologize."

The silver-haired woman nodded somberly, turning to the rest of the room's occupants. "Good. Now let us continue with our planning. I believe Lady Luna was correct moments ago when she claimed that we should first discover the depth of Serena's treachery before planning our attack. As it is, masquerading as a Senshi and using Senshi powers. is a threat of the highest degree. We must learn how she managed to achieved such a deed to make sure no one else will--"

Ami tuned out the woman's words as she listlessly dropped her computer into her subspace pocket and clasped her hands around her knees. _'Tomorrow.' _she swore to herself, _'Tomorrow I will talk to Darien about that night. Even if I have to skip school to track him down, I have to make sure I get his side of the story soon so I can clear Serena's name.' _Even then though, she wasn't sure what his side of the story would reveal --_if _the man said anything at all. She just knew that she would have to keep lying to Serena a little longer because there was a good possibility that the girl's _husband __**had **_saved her that night. Ami sighed as she ran a frustrated hand through her hair. _'But where is he now?'_

* * *

A dark scowl covered Darien's face as he closed his apartment door behind him, taking great care to not slam it shut like he wanted to. He could understand the stares that had followed him from the hospital but that did not mean he liked them. Surely a man covered in paint couldn't be all _that _strange in Tokyo?

But no. Apparently he was something of interest.

'_If I'd known how this damn day was going to turn out, I would have driven to the hospital instead of taking the train. Just to make _something _easier on me.'_ His scowl deepened as he uncaringly dropped his book bag beside the door along with his leather jacket. Both were, by some miracle, paint free but everything _else _on his person wasn't. His t-shirt, his jeans, his skin, his _hair_; they were all covered with a multitude of blues, greens, reds, purples, and every other color under the sun. And, despite the _"Washable Paint!" _message on the labels, he had had no luck getting more than a few speckles off here and there in the hospital bathroom.

He toed off his black loafers beside his couch, his glare deepening as he noticed speckles on the top of the leather. _'Figures that they didn't even escape the rampage of an Odango.'_ Of course, it wasn't like he _blamed _Serena; she had just been a participant in the painting session that had gone horribly wrong. _'Or more like a participant in the Thursday from Hell.' _He groaned as he swiped up his shoes and headed to the kitchen a few steps away. Along the way he spotted his answering machine blinking so he paused to jab the appropriate button before continuing on.

"_**You have two new messages. Message one."**_ The feminine robotic voice stated before ushering in the first caller, someone Darien knew well. _**"Hello, Darien! This is Arthur Lunvaire!---"**_

The dark-haired man abruptly froze above the running sink, one hand with a shoe and the other with a rag._ 'The review!'_ It wasn't a reminder he was looking for, especially with the current predicament he found himself in. _'As if this day couldn't get any worse.'_ He thought miserably.

"_**--I was just calling to let you know the latest developments on that review for your inheritance."**_ The older man abruptly let out a loud, hearty chuckle. _**"It seems that we are in luck, my boy! I just got a call from a Ms. …"**_ Darien could vaguely hear franticly shuffled papers._** "Setsuna Meioh(2), yes, that's what it was. Anyways, apparently she's the newest member of the Board and had recently been named its spokesperson but, here's the best part!, she called to inform me that the review had been canceled, **_**permanently**_**!" **_Darien's head snapped over to the phone incredulously as the rag dropped from his hand. _**"Turns out that while the Board members were preparing for the review they went behind our backs, so to speak. They contacted your professors, the hospital where you volunteer, and somehow or another they even found out what charities you donated to! Just to get third-party opinions of you and your behavior! Now I know what you are thinking and I do agree somewhat. What they did was a complete invasion of your privacy but at the same time I am grateful. If the review hadn't been canceled--- Well, let's not worry about that right? Never take a gift-horse in the mouth, I say! What's more, it seems, is that the Board was thoroughly impressed with you. Ms. Meioh informed me that, in addition to canceling **_**this **_**review, the Board decided--End of message one."**_

Darien shook his head as the robotic voice abruptly cut his lawyer off. _**"Message two. --pid machine cutting me off!"**_ He smirked at the frustration the usually cheerful man was displaying. _**"Hello, Darien. It's Arthur again. As I was saying, in addition to canceling the review, I was told that the Board made an almost unanimous decision that you were using your inheritance properly and, by properly, I mean like how your parents would have wanted you to. **_**So**_**…" **_He could _hear _the grin in Arthur's voice. _**"the Board has officially withdrawn itself from your affairs. They will **_**never **_**be bothering you**__**again. Isn't that **_**wonderful **_**news? Now you wouldn't have all those people hovering and breathing down your neck all the time. You may use your money however you want and continue on with life…"**_ Darien frowned as Arthur trailed off, the line silent for a moment. _**"There-- I am still coming to Japan as planned, however, because there are …things… I need to tell you. Should have told you much sooner, probably, but-- Well, I'm not going to get into it now. This needs to be face to face conversation, no doubt about it."**_ Arthur gave a weak chuckle. _**"No doubt about it at all… So, I will be arriving in Japan soon, after I'm done preparing for this instead. Now don't you worry at all! It isn't bad in the least, at least I don't think so, but you know it's kinda unethical--" **_The white-haired man cleared his throat loudly, and awkwardly. _**"Boy am I glad this is on a message. I'll call when I arrive, En-Darien, so make sure you stay out of trouble until then, alright? Not that I think you're in some kind of trouble or danger or anything!" **_Arthur amended quickly. _**"What I meant was that you should just-- I'm going to hang up now. Bye, Darien. See you shortly."**_

Darien eyed the phone strangely. He had never heard Arthur sound that awkward or vague in all the years he'd known him. The man was hiding something, he was sure of it, but as long as that damned review and Board was out of the way, who was he to complain? _'And now it seems like my decision is made because if that wasn't a sign, I don't know what is.' _He ran a tired hand over his face as he headed for the bathroom, the rag completely forgotten on the floor.

* * *

The next morning, Darien's stoic face observed the woman across the large conference table. He really should be surprised and chuckling with irony to see that it was Mrs. Taiko that was staring back at him blankly. Luckily for him, he was just too numb to register the fact right now.

"The others shall arrive soon, Mr. Shields." she informed him crisply. She was in her 'business' mode; calm, cool, and collected with no hints of showing she had met him before in her life. But, truthfully, he would have been disappointed to see or hear anything else from her. He just hoped she kept that 'business'- state of mind with her the whole meeting and forget the fact she knew he had _lied _about caring for her husband that fateful day Minako bowled him over.

"Of course, Mrs. Taiko." He nodded in acceptance, distractedly adjusting the jacket of his dark grey suit. _'How did I get to be here again?' _He frowned down at the folder he had brought in with him. _'That's right. It all started with Nurse June's visit yesterday.'_

* * *

_He'd expected the day to be as ordinary as any of the others that week. He woke up, showered, dressed, grabbed something to eat, and went to his first class of the day. After the class ended, he hopped onto the 11 a.m. train to the hospital to spend what he'd planned to be an hour or two visit with Serena and Hotaru beforel his next class at 1:30. When he got there, however, Hotaru had been quietly reading and he'd been informed by one of the nurses that Odango had gone to her daily testing session. Not deterred by Hotaru's "go away and leave me alone"- look, he decided to stay and start reading the novel he'd just been assigned in Literature class._

_So he settled into his chair by Serena's bed and did just that. It was less than a chapter later that the door opened but, instead of Serena returning, it was his misfortune to see the blonde-headed Nurse June. A misfortune because she was still irritated over the fact he'd managed to sneak into Hotaru and Serena's room before visiting hours and stay after them --repeatedly all week. Of course, only the two of them knew that her resentment had more to do with bowls of gelatin that had been dumped by his younger self onto her scrubs years ago. The sneaking into the room was just an excuse to hate him even more that she did._

_In an attempt to hide from the polka dot-scrub clad nurse, the man hunkered down further into his chair and pretended to be engrossed in his book. He knew that even the slightest movement could provoke her into throwing him out (or tattle on him) and doing either might keep him from visiting Hotaru and Serena anymore. Moments later, when he didn't sense anyone hovering over him ominously, he looked over to see Nurse June sitting down a couple of department store bags on Hotaru's bed. The girl in turn had sat down her own book sometime and was now watching the woman warily, still never saying a word like usual._

"_Come on, Hotaru." The woman coaxed in a sugary-sweet voice that caused Darien to wince, "Those stuffy doctors finally agreed that you could have all these things that were found with you and your Mommy." She held up a teddy bear and waved it playfully. "See? It'll remind you of the good times you had shopping with her."_

_Darien knew from experience that Nurse June wasn't the nicest nurse in the world --after all, the gelatin incidents _did _happen for a reason-- but he felt that she had been doing a relatively decent job with Hotaru from what he'd seen. She spoke in calm, if sometimes too fake and sugary, tones; didn't blatantly force the girl to try to talk; and had been more attentive that not (though not by much) to her needs. In a whole, it was the nicest and most considerate he had ever seen the woman. But even with that in mind, he wasn't very stunned to see what happened next._

_Hotaru, eyes widening in what looked like a mixture of horror and shame, began to shake her head rapidly as the nurse walked closer with the stuffed animal. When Nurse June sighed and tried to place the bear into Hotaru's cast-less right arm, the girl actually began to cry as she attempted to squirm away._

"_Don't you dare start crying, young lady!" The woman said sharply as she threw the bear down beside Hotaru's legs and turned away, "It's just a damn stuffed animal. It's never hurt anybody."_

_Darien at this point had already begun to stand up --having thought Nurse June had hurt the girl when she'd began to cry-- but now he frowned in outrage as all thoughts of the woman ever being nice fled his mind. Seconds later he was watching in surprise as Hotaru angrily snatched up the bear and chucked it at the nurse's back with all her might. The blonde woman instantly spun on her heel, gaping at the child, while Darien smirked. He didn't get father than tossing down his book and taking a few steps before Nurse June gathered her wits and bent down to pick up the bear. "Now look here you little--"_

_Darien's scowl returned deeper and he quickly rushed forward as the woman headed to Hotaru, brandishing the bear threateningly all the while. He had to practically pry the toy out of her steel-like grip but, once he managed to, he leveled the nurse his coldest glare. "Nurse June, I suggest you leave."_

_The older woman glared at him in return but, thankfully, made no move to retrieve the bear. Instead she placed her pink fingernail-ed hands on her hips and took a menacing step closer to him. "You have no right to order me around, Darien. If anything, _you _should be the one to leave me and my patient alone. You're lucky that I've allowed you to stay in here considering what you've been doing all week."_

_Darien, not one to easily intimidate, calmly sat the teddy bear down on the edge of Hotaru's bed. "I am well aware of the rules, Nurse June, and I am also quite aware that it is not in the best interest of the patient to antagonize them. Let alone threaten them with toys."_

"_I did no such thing!"_

_Darien eyed in the woman in disbelief and gestured toward the stuffed animal. "No? Then why did Hotaru throw a bear at you? Why did __**I **__throw gelatin at you when I was younger? You should be comforting a child who is going through a traumatic experience __**not **__making it worse."_

"_It's not my fault that the stupid girl can't talk!" she snapped as she gestured wildly toward the still silently crying child. Hotaru gave a loud, audible choked sob at the words and Darien grit his teeth at the memory that assaulted him._

"_**It's not my fault that the stupid boy can't remember his own parents!"**_

_His lip curled up in disgust as he heard a younger Nurse June's words flooding his ears. Before he knew what he was doing he had a hold of one of the woman's biceps to keep her from walking away. "It is never your fault, is it Nurse June?" he asked in contempt. Something inside of him couldn't help but smirk as her eyes widened in fear. "It isn't your fault that Hotaru's mother is in a coma and it surely isn't your fault that the stupid little boy I am still can't remember his parents or the first six years of his life." He leaned closer. "But you're wrong, there __**is **__something that is your fault. That little girl is crying her eyes out right now because of __**you**__. I didn't -and still don't- care about what you say about me or to me. __**However**__, you have another thing coming if you think I will allow you to harass a child."_

_Nurse June swallowed thickly as the man's voice washed over her. Was is just her or did it sound like there were two people talking at once? After a moment she ground her teeth to rein in her fear and jerked her arm out of his grip. She would not stand for a teenaged brat talking to her like that! "You have no power or say over me, Darien. I will do whatever I want whenever I want. And that includes saying what I want about my patients." Darien glowered, but he said nothing, so the brown-eyed woman grinned. "See? You know that you can't do anything so you know what? I think I'll say something else. I'm __**glad **__Hotaru's mother was finally smart enough to realize she could be rid of the idiot by dying."_

_Hotaru released a keen wail at the words and Darien hissed furiously, "Nurse June--"_

"_No. You will __**not **__say such things." _

_Both Darien and the nurse's heads snapped over to the doorway to see Mrs. Tsukino and Serena. The older woman had one hand on Serena's shoulder and the older fisted into her chest, her face was a mask of shock and disbelief. Serena herself had both hands clinched together at her sides so hard that the whites of her knuckles were showing while horrified tears trailed paths down her cheeks. _

_With a mixture of relief and dread Darien realized they'd been there for most of the conversation, if not all of it. He calmly stepped back from Nurse June and dropped the hand that had been heading toward her arm again. His actions, it seemed, snapped the room back into action. He warily watched as Serena shook off her mother's hand. She was trembling all over with exhaustion, a result of all the constant, long testing sessions she was being subjected to, but her expression was steady as she walked to Nurse June. She didn't waste a second before pulling back her hand back and slapping the woman for all she was worth._

"_You heartless witch."_

_Darien smirked, not at all surprised that Odango had stuck up for who she considered to be a new friend. Still he couldn't help but glance at Mrs. Tsukino to see her expression. He blinked as all he saw was pride shining through her glossy eyes. No shock, no anger, just sheer motherly pride toward her daughter. Though, he supposed he shouldn't be surprised; Mrs. Tsukino, after all, had been the one that first spoke and he suspected that if Serena hadn't slapped Nurse June, her mother would have done something similar. His smile widened as he looked back at Serena to see she was still continuing to stare at the taller woman. Her back was straight, there was a defiant tilt to her chin, and anger shone in her eyes despite the still slipping tears._

_Nurse June, on the other hand, had grabbed her rapidly reddening cheek and was staring down her nose at the teenager. She sneered, "What did you say to me, you little brat?"_

_From where he was standing only a few feet away he saw how Serena narrowed her eyes. "I spoke of what you truly are: a heartless witch. Be fortunate I have not said anything else."_

_Darien blinked again. There was something about the way Serena was speaking but he couldn't quite place what it was, only that it seemed familiar. "Serena…" Her eyes instantly snapped over to him and her face crumpled; the anger disappeared only for the disbelief and sadness to return._

"_D-Darien…" She walked closer, until she was almost pressed against his chest, before peering up at him through her lashes. "Is--is what you said true? About not remembering your parents or--or when you were little?" He looked away but that was more than enough answer for her. She took a shuddery breath, trying not to break down, and leaned her forehead against his chest. "I'm sorry. S-so sorry"_

"_Hey," He whispered, hooking a finger under her chin and lifting her head up. He tried to give a reassuring smile but she winced, so he knew it wasn't very successful. He sighed after a moment, unable to think of anything to say, and dropped his hand as he looked over at Hotaru. The girl had gone back to silently crying and, as she met his eyes, he flinched at the sheer emptiness in hers. Something inside of her had been broken during this conversation, there was no doubt about it. "I don't think I'm the one you should be worrying about, Odango." He murmured._

_The girl bit her lip to stop another harsh, shuddering breath as she got a good look at the child. "Oh, god…" She whispered, burying her forehead against Darien's chest harder as if she was wishing everything was a dream. With only a second of hesitation to dart his eyes to Mrs. Tsukino, whom was watching them sadly, Darien enclosed his friend's waist in his arms and dragged her the few remaining inches closer. As if that was the only thing she was waiting for, Serena broke down into sobs and quickly lopped her arms around Darien's neck in a tight hug. "W-why," Darien heard her rough, choked-up whisper, "Why did these ter--terrible things have to h-happen to you and Ho-Hotaru… She--she's the sweetest little girl ever and you--you're…"_

_Darien dropped his head onto Serena's with a sigh as she broken down into quiet gasps and shuddering hiccups. "I just don't know…" He looked over at Hotaru and closed his eyes; he could practically _see _how she was beginning to close off from everyone and everything._

_On the other side of the room Nurse June, thinking she had long been forgotten at this point, rolled her eyes. She narrowed her eyes at the couple, sneering as she rubbed her still-aching cheek, and turned on her heel. She did not need to deal with these arrogant brats anymore; she had other duties to attend. But fate wasn't on her side as she ran straight into Mrs. Tsukino. The woman still stood in front of the closed door, her arms now crossed over her chest and a frown on her face. She growled. "Move." When the infuriating woman only rose an eyebrow, she threw her hands up in the air. "For goodness sake's woman, _move_! I have work to do!"_

_Darien's eyes snapped open at the sudden exclamation, feeling his companion freeze less than a second later. He quickly dropped his arms with a slight blush but, once he caught sight of Serena's face as she let go and took a step away, he was comforted by the fact she was reddening too. Yet his relief soon morphed into cold anger as she turned to Hotaru, a sob swelling up in her throat as her eyes began watering again. Without thinking he placed his hand on Serena's lower back and steered her to the child's hospital bed. She cast him a glance --one full of meaning he couldn't decipher-- before breaking contact. She climbed onto the bed and carefully enclosed Hotaru in her arms, afraid the child was going to run away and shut herself off. Darien watched apprehensively as the black-haired girl stiffened at the loose hug before digging her head into Serena's neck. "D-don't you _dare _believe her, H-Hotaru…" They all could hear Serena say as she tightened her hug, "You--your Mommy loves you sooo much. O-okay?"_

_Darien glared at Nurse June as she scoffed loudly. "Nurse June," he drawled with a sudden smile. He stalked toward her like she was prey and she had to bite her lip to keep in her squeak of fear. "I do believe the Director of this hospital would be most interested in hearing about your actions."_

_Her face burnt in anger. "He will hear of yours as well, Darien!" She tossed a glare to Serena. "And do not think that that girl being a patient here will stop me from informing the Director of her assault. I will not stand for it."_

_He nodded, a patient look on his face. "I did not expect anything else of you, Nurse June." He glanced back at the crying females on the bed before directly addressing Mrs. Tsukino. "I need to speak with someone. I will be back soon."_

_She nodded hesitantly and moved out of the doorway. Darien gestured toward the door with a bow and addressed the nurse. "After you, of course, Nurse June. You do have other patients to attend to after all." When she sent him a suspicious glare, he smiled. "For now."_

_

* * *

_

So here he was the next day; Friday and the day Odango was being released, to be exact. The Director of the hospital, unhappy that one of the facilities "special cases" could possibly have been mistreated, had taken every single one of his words yesterday seriously --a far cry from when he'd been seven and reporting the harassment against _himself_. As he sat waiting in this conference room, an investigation --headed by the Director himself-- was taking place and the nurse in question was on paid administrative leave. But he still wasn't happy because the investigation was looking into _both _sides of the story.

Nurse June, bitter at being pulled away from her duties only to be told to pack up her things and leave until further notice, had filed her own complaint. Darien's lips turned down at the thought; the nurse had told the Director that yesterday had been a complete, _innocent _misunderstanding that he and Odango had exploded it out of proportion. Of course that meant she made sure to include that Serena had slapped her without provocation and that he himself had manhandled her in addition to verbally assaulting her. She'd already implied she would have no qualms in pressing charges against both himself and the Tsukinos for harassment and, if she was fired, the hospital for unfair early dismissal.

Of course, _that _had already ensured she had gotten a higher paid leave than she should receive because the Director claimed that Azabu General could not afford to be sued or the negative publicity that would follow such an action. Darien, much to his annoyance, had to agree because he knew Nurse June would drag everyone down with her if she was fired. _'Innocent Nurse June, my ass…' _

Darien's head snapped up, his thoughts fleeing, as the door to the conference room opened and three people walked in. He quickly stood and bowed, waiting for each of them to get their seats. The first was an elderly man, perhaps in his mid-fifties, dressed in a sharp grey suit that matched his grey hair and carrying a soft brown leather briefcase; he gave a short nod as he passed Darien. The second was a woman, around the same age he'd expect Mrs. Tsukino and Nurse June to be in their late-thirties or early forties. She was wearing a black skirt and dark blue blouse and carrying a black leather satchel; she gave a small nod and smile in his direction. The third and last person to enter Darien knew very well. Dr. Vigil, dressed in his white-lab coat and green scrubs, gave Darien a bright sunny smile as he adjusted the large, visibly unorganized file he had under one of his arms.

When they were all seated, Darien sat down and tried not to fidget. _'Am I really doing the right thing?' _His mind wandered to Hotaru who, now, absolutely refused to listen or interact with anyone, _including _Serena. All the progress she'd made in the past week had been completely reversed thanks to Nurse June and, honestly, she seemed _worse _now. The best evidence being the painting session they'd tried having after everyone had calmed down from the nurse's visit.

Serena had, in true unstoppable Serena-form, somehow or other discovered that Hotaru liked art. If nothing else, she seemed curious about it. Wednesday Odango'd had her mother bring in supplies and he'd arrived later only to find both roommates covered in speckles of paint and giggling. _Giggling; _he'd thought Hotaru smiling the night her cast had been miraculous but that… it'd blown him out of the water, so to speak. Apparently Serena had thought she'd be able to cheer Hotaru up in the same way because, as soon as their tears had dried, she'd pulled out the art supplies and declared that they should paint something.

Unsurprisingly Hotaru had refused; she'd gone so far as ripping up half a stack of construction paper and squeezing a bottle of paint onto the blonde's head at one point. Odango hadn't gotten angry, or discouraged, and instead simply taken a short trip to the restroom to clean herself off. When she returned, still with visible splatters of newly white hair, she calmly placed a stack of paper and a water-coloring paint set at the end of the child's bed before asking if he wanted to paint with her instead. He'd thought everything had been going okay ---he and Odango painting a sky and Hotaru alternating between glaring at anyone who entered the room and listlessly staring at the ceiling-- but when one of the afternoon nurses had come in with a snack for the two girls, he'd realized Hotaru's mood had only gotten worse. The nurse, unprepared for the more-hostile-than-usual girl, had left with both snacks --nice lime green gelatin cups-- smearing down his face, his favorite beige scrubs, and a death glare. All courtesy of Hotaru. _'But I know that was, unfortunately, my fault for placing the idea in her head.'_

Then later, when Serena had asked him if she knew what else they could do, he'd decided to try to lighten up the mood by jokingly saying that anything else might take to long considering she already _had _white hair, a jab at Hotaru's paint job. She hadn't laughed or found it funny; instead she'd said that at least she didn't beat up the girl, a jab at the fight between he and Motoki. He'd gone of the defensive and before he knew it, both of them had been covered from head to toe with splatters of paint and Hotaru had snuck out them none the wiser. Luckily after a half-hour search they'd found her hiding in her mother's room but that didn't make them feel any less guiltier about their neglect of the girl. So, as luck would have it, he and Odango had gotten into another fight about who's fault it was that the girl had snuck out. That one, instead of fizzling out, _Hotaru _had ended when she'd squirted both of them with fresh paint she'd found who-knows-where and promptly pressed her buzzard for a nurse.

The nurse, taking one look at the room and then he and Serena, had promptly said it was time for him to leave. So Hotaru had gotten what she wanted: him to go away and Serena, he was sure, had been placed in a shower to try to get all the paint out of her long hair, thus giving Hotaru the privacy and alone time she wanted. But Darien considered the worst thing being that he would have been the _exact s_ame thing had he been placed in Hotaru's situation when he was younger. To put it simply, the girl was slowing turning into him. Iced-over heart, emotional shields, bitterness, and all.

'_And that's how I know I'm doing the right thing.' _Darien told himself firmly. The world certainly didn't need another Darien Shields. He was sure that would give Odango a heart attack and she probably wouldn't be the only one. But, unfortunately for everybody, Hotaru was already well on her way to becoming just like him and would continue to do so. _If _he didn't do something about it first.

"Now," Mrs. Taiko called out, drawing the attention of himself and the others who had been quietly conversation between themselves. They immediately fell silent. "Is everyone ready to begin?"

Darien felt himself give a small nod but couldn't force any words out of his suddenly-dry mouth. He watched nervously as the other woman in the room slipped on a pair of reading glasses and began to flip through the documents in front of her, flashing her colleague a quick smile. The elderly man gave Mrs. Taiko a small nod and folded his hands on top of the table, looking at Darien intently. Dr. Vigil smiled and opened his large folder; he was the only one that spoke. "Go ahead Mara."

Mrs. Taiko flashed the man a thankful smile before clearing her throat. "Good. Now, ladies and gentlemen, I think it would be best to introduce ourselves before we begin the proceedings." She took a second to stand up and smile to everyone. "I am Mara Taiko, the current head of the Department of Human Resources here at the hospital. I am, also, on the Board of Trustees. I will be overseeing this case in its entirety in the absence of the hospital director whom is currently in the midst of conducting an investigation." If she saw the slight flinch Darien emitted, she didn't comment on it. "In addition to overseeing the case, I will also determine and see to it that the patient's best interests are being met and fulfilled."

She sat down and the person to her left stood up after a slight pause. The elderly man cleared his throat loudly, looking pointedly at Darien. "I am Doctor Mathias Hiroshi, board-certified Child Psychologist. I have been reviewing the patient's mental health since she was brought into Azabu General and will continue to do so until she is deemed mentally sound once more. Of which includes the full restoration of verbal communication."

When he sat down the person to his left stood. The remaining woman flashed everyone a bright smile as she smoothed down her skirt. "Hello, my name is Natsumi Une. I work for the government's Social Services Department and as such, I am the case worker now assigned to the patient. I am in charge of locating other family relations while her mother is incapacitated. And, if the patient's mother does not awaken within an allotted time, I am thoroughly dedicated to seeing that she has a proper home once her stay at the hospital has expired."

Just as Darien was about to stand, Dr. Vigil waved him down and stood up himself from his position at Mrs. Taiko's right side. He flashed the confused young man an apologetic smile before continuing. "To finish off the professionals, I am Doctor Reynolds Vigil, a General Medicine doctor here at the hospital. I have been the patient's assigned doctor since she was brought in. As well as my notes on the patient's health, I am here to offer any other information and opinions as they are needed in this case. Thank you."

Darien paused to give the others a chance to say anything else before standing proudly. "Good morning, ladies and gentlemen." he began respectively with a slight bow, "I am Darien Shields. I am currently eighteen years old and enrolled full time in the pre-Med major at Tokyo University. I am also, as I am sure you all are aware, the reason this meeting was called for."

When Darien hesitated, noticing just how surreal this meeting felt, Mrs. Taiko spoke up in an attempt to help what she thought was nerves. "Yes, Mr. Shields. You are here concerning the approximately four-year old Jane Doe patient, who has been dubbed _Hotaru _by the staff here. For the record please state your business and the reason for this conference."

Darien held his breath, knowing this was the moment he could walk out. He could walk out, pretend he had never had the Director call this ludicrous meeting; he would _never _have to look back. But, if he said anything now, there was absolutely _no _going back. He'd already decided this was for all or nothing before walking in here and that's exactly what it was going to be; nothing more, nothing less. He blew out a calm breath as an image of Hotaru wrapped up in Serena's arms came flooding back to him. He leveled each of the professionals a stare and the words flowed out of his mouth confidently.

"Today, on November twenty-first, I -Darien Shields- am here to formally contest for the patient _Hotaru's _legal guardianship until such time as either her mother awakens or other family is located."

* * *

Done: Feb 9, 2009 9:00

Posted: Feb 9 2009 9:30-ish

1. Albreda _(ahl breh dah)_ German for "advice of an elf". No mythology and I'm still not exactly sure whether I'm happy with the name or not. What do you guys think?

2. For confirmation purposes, that _is _Sailor Pluto. I think she's up to something, anyone agree? --grin--

_**FYI, to avoid possible future questions:**_

Nurse June _is _the woman who scratched Hotaru's arm that first night before she ran into Pluto's room. She's a real piece of work, huh? Also, _**no one **_knew that "Princess Serenity" had already pretended to be Makoto's mother before. They thought that this was her first and only time; just to make sure that no police investigation would be started, like Ami and Serena were talking about earlier.

Woohoo! Ami and Zoisite have met; I think this meeting is more in-character than the other I wrote. Though, to be honest, I do still prefer the other. If only because it was OOC. Hehe, maybe I still will include it anyways later. Hmm… ideas. In any case, how long do you think it'll be before she finds out that Darien was the "husband"-rescuer that night? I know _when_ (as in what's going on during that time)she finds out, I just need to figure our how much time is left until then because it's supposed to be near the end.

You know, I'm glad Maerina's _officially _dead. She was kinda annoying me with how she was just _there_ but hadn't appeared for awhile_._ She had a purpose to introduce Zoicite and set the "betrayal" in motion and stuff but her purpose was over and someone needed to kill her. Fast. So bring in Kunz! For the sake of his king!

Last words: GO DARIEN! SAVE LITTLE HOTARU! Anyone else like that? I've been planning that for awhile now. Hehe. Since Serena can't have guardianship, since she's a minor herself, time for her better half to go for it.

Tiger Celeste.


	25. Chapter 25

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

I've been inspired! Tremendously! Early chapter and the now the poll is officially closed. Results are as follows:

_Would you be interested in a continuation of my story Emerge to Reveal?_

**62% Yes, as a sequel to Emerge to Reveal. Maybe continue where the story left off, a few years into the future possibly.**

38% Yes, as a Silver Millennium prequel to answer all the questions left unanswered or unclear in Emerge to Reveal.

0% No. (Which I am very happy about, by the way. Lol)

Though, because I do not like people disappointed, I am making slight alterations. The story with not be a sequel but rather a _**fanfic-continuation **_and taking place a few _**months **_down the road rather than years. Both Uranus and Neptune _will _make an appearance, even have how they're going to be introduced kinda planned. For those that wanted the prequel, maybe one day because I want to write the "Fall", Endy/Sere and Sen/Gen meetings and not have them as a flashbacks. For now however, I will continue on with the SM flashbacks. Hopefully there will be a little more in the next but I make no promises.

Well, that's all I'm going to say since this is the longest chapter to date now. (a nice 30 pgs. 10 font in Word again. Whew!) Reviews and questions will be answered next time. If you have any questions on either this story or the next, go ahead and ask and I will answer them then too.

I'd like you to keep in mind that when Áine/Minako/Venus uses the attack _"Stunning Whip of Wrath!" _she usually collapses. You'll find out why in the chapter.

On to the story!

* * *

The solitary click of her white heels and a flash of orange light were the only things that disturbed the room Áine transported herself in. It was dark, cold, unnaturally silent, and she hated it. She'd never been here without being summoned, as a matter of fact, but today… today was different.

"_**Lady Ami," Faux-Princess Serenity said softly, "I applaud your …honor… of the friendship you believe you held with this Serena but sometimes you have to accept things are never as you expect them to be. I, for one, had expected my guard to still be in proper condition when I arrived. Yet instead I discovered one has died a most tragic death. It is the same with Serena; you believe she was a friend and instead we must accept she is quite the opposite."**_

'_I, for one, had expected my guard to still be in proper condition when I arrived.'_

'…_proper condition…'_

The golden-haired woman smirked as she bent down in front of the object she was seeking, her face gaining a green glow as she did so. "Well, well, well. It seems my suspicions were true. You're still active." She narrowed her eyes at the emerald gemstone. "But where's your master? Where's Valkyrie?"

* * *

"Well, he wasn't there either." Ami muttered to herself, sighing heavily, as she walked out of Azubu General Hospital. In fact, when she'd arrived at Serena's hospital room it had been empty. She'd been forced to go down to the lobby's front desk to found out where Serena or Darien were, only to learn that the former was in her last testing session with Drs. Mizuno and Rupert and the latter hadn't been seen. She'd immediately hurried a thank you to the woman and hightailed it outside without another word. She did _not _want her mother to find out she'd skipped school essentially to talk to a _guy_. She could just imagine the trouble she would get into and how disappointed her mother would be.

'_So that cancels out the arcade, the library, the hospital now. Where _else _could Darien be?'_ She began chewing on her lip as she thought about anything she knew about the man. It wasn't as if they were _friends_, they only really knew each other through Serena, but there had to be _somewhere _she could figure he might be._ 'But, honestly, the only two other places I can think of would be his apartment or the university.'_

However she would need Motoki's help with Darien's address since it wasn't listed in any of her sources but he, _also_, seemed to be strangely missing. When she'd asked a waitress at the arcade if either had been there, she'd been told that Motoki had taken the day off to catch up on something or other and Darien hadn't been seen for a _week_. As for the university she wouldn't even know where to start looking. While she knew Darien aspired to be a doctor, he was also only a freshman. Meaning he more than likely had lower-division classes, meaning he could be _anywhere _on the campus and Tokyo University wasn't a small school. The same for looking for Motoki; though she didn't even know _what _major he was so he could be even more places than Darien could be, _if _he was even on campus to begin with. And it wasn't as if any university personnel would willingly offer either men's personal information.

The bluenette frowned as she felt a cold wind blow through her sweater; to make matters worse, it felt as if it'd rain any minute, which was the _worst _weather to be looking for someone in by far. She sighed as she boarded a bus, feeding a few coins into the machine before sitting in a vacant seat. _'Maybe I should just go back to the arcade to see if someone knows where Motoki might be.' _She'd just about resigned herself to a wasted day before remembering that Serena had implied numerous times that Darien loved the _park_. Which park, exactly, wasn't really a question because there was only one near the arcade and thus the one he'd more than likely go to. She grinned hopefully; with any luck the man would be there and she'd be one step closer to clearing Serena's name.

* * *

Darien was silent as he watched the four professionals look through the stacks of paperwork he handed to each. An application for guardianship he'd had in his possession for a few days, a copy of the background check and fingerprint report he'd already had on file with the hospital, a copy of his driver's license, a copy of his first aid certification, and a few more sheets of other forms. He made sure to have every single thing the Director had listed off yesterday in hopes of making the process smoother.

Slowly, one by one they finished skimming the information and looked up at him. Ms. Une cleared her throat as she folded her hands and placed them on top of the paperwork. "Mr. Shields," she began gently, "to be honest, I am quite surprised to see someone of your age interested in gaining guardianship of a child. _Especially _when there is no family relation to be had."

"I agree." commented Dr. Hiroshi, "There is also the fact that the patient has been in this hospital for only a short week. Did you know either the patient or her mother before the accident?"

"No. I did not, sir." Darien stated firmly, hardening his resolve to not back down as he saw the doubt lingering in everyone's eyes. It was going to be hard to gain custody of Hotaru but she was worth it. "I only met Hotaru when she began to share a hospital room with my friend last Saturday."

"And what is the name of your friend, Mr. Shields?" Dr. Hiroshi questioned, only looking up once as he jotted something down on his notepad.

"Serena Tsukino, sir." Darien was sure he saw Mrs. Taiko's eyes flash at the name, possibly in reminder of the night at the arcade, but couldn't be sure because when he looked closer all he saw was polite 'business' interest. Just like what was on everyone else's face.

"Miss Tsukino is my patient as well." Dr. Vigil piped up. "Both she and Hotaru had been hospitalized the same night, though for different reasons."

"I see, I see." Dr. Hiroshi jotted down more notes. "Mr. Shields, how often are you in contact with Hotaru?"

Darien was beginning to wonder why it was that the psychologist seemed to be the one asking all the questions but still answered dutifully. "Every day during my free time I am in their room, visiting either Serena or Hotaru, but not all the time do I interact with Hotaru. Sometimes I just stay in the room while she reads to herself. Other times I read to her or participate in an activity such as coloring or a puzzle."

"So… you are saying that you do not truly know the child?"

He blinked at the question, looking over at Ms. Une. "I believe 'know' is a subjective word, ma'am. I will readily admit that I do not what her life is like outside this hospital, what her favorite food is, or what she does for fun. Yet, given the circumstances, no one but herself knows any of that right now. I do, however, know what she is going through. I understand Hotaru. Possibly better than anyone at this hospital."

Everyone but Dr. Vigil looked at the young man in intrigue. Mrs. Taiko leaned forward and peered at him curiously. "And how, pray tell, do you understand the child, Mr. Shields?"

He took a deep breath before beginning. "Like Hotaru, I was also in a traumatic accident. I was six years old compared to her estimated four years but I believe a trauma is the same at any age. Especially when you are so young." He paused to give a wane smile at the encouraging one Dr. Vigil was throwing his way. "I am told my parents and I drove off a cliff when I was six. I said 'told' because I do not remember the accident nor anything beforehand. Not even my own parents." They all took a breath, even Dr. Vigil who was startled at hearing it said out loud after so long. But, when Darien looked up, all he saw were carefully blanked faces. He fought the urge to scowl. "I was diagnosed with complete amnesia. Despite the efforts of some of the best doctors in the country, I have never recalled the accident nor anything previous to waking in the hospital. Some could say that I, unlike Hotaru, am fortunate to not recall any of those things. That I am a blank slate to start over on."

He gave them all a piercing stare, as if trying to see if any of them were thinking such a thing. "Those people do not understand the pain of not knowing or remembering the people that created and raised me. Or even the pain of having a stranger tell me my _own _surname seven _**years **_after my parents died. When I was told about my parents and showed a picture of them, I felt nothing. They were strangers. Parents should never have to be strangers." He paused for a second, rearranging his thoughts before he was stuck in memories, "…The fact of the matter, ladies and gentlemen, is that I understand what it means to go through such a horrific accident. But I had to deal with the loss of my memories and the death of my parents _alone. _No one understood me; they simply patronized and pitied me. I do not want to have to see Hotaru suffer the same fate if her mother doesn't waken. And, on that note, I cannot say that she is in the best environment for both her mental and physical improvement."

"And why is that?" questioned Mr. Hiroshi with a curious tilt of his eyebrows. The others were silent, still reeling over the young man's past experience.

Darien's lips thinned into a tight line. "Already I have heard the staffs' stories of her mother's failing condition and the rumor Hotaru is to be sent to an orphanage within a matter of days. I can only imagine that she has as well and most likely seen only despair in her future. People do not seem to realize that Hotaru is mute, not deaf."

Mrs. Taiko frowned somewhat menacingly. "Are they truly saying such things in the child's presence?"

The dark-haired man gave a grim nod. "Yes, ma'am. Not all of them, of course, but you do hear the echoing down the halls or even the whispering in the room when they think she is not listening. The girl only has to pay attention to hear the hurtful words."

"I can attest to that as well, Mara." Dr. Vigil was scowling in thought. "They also seem for forget that Hotaru is mute by choice and can tattle on them whenever she chooses. But she never does, so I have taken it upon myself to inform everyone that they are speaking of a private, _sensitive _subject and that it is harmful to _any _child to hear their mother may slip away at any moment. Regrettably, it only stops them for so long. They do not seem to care about confidentiality or Hotaru's mental health."

Mrs. Taiko began scribbling furiously at her own notepad and Darien fought the urge to smirk as he thought of something. _'Hotaru:1 Nurse June:0'_

* * *

A pained scream pierced the quietness of the darkened room as Áine flew through the air, landing against a far wall in a pile of golden hair. Seconds later a tortured moan sounded as she gingerly sat up in a sitting position, wincing as she rubbed the skin over her heart. "_Ow_. I think that might have been stupid on my part. At least twenty-thousand volts straight to the heart. Yeah. _Smaaart_." She grumbled as she unsteadily regained her footing. She glared at the barrier she'd been tossed from. _'One little touch and ZAM!'_

The electrical currents were now visible on the barrier, matching the ones pulsing happily about the emerald inside. She ground her teeth in annoyance, and pain, but still walked back to the ivory pedestal which the two were resting on. As she did so, she glanced down at herself to access the damage. Her once-pristine white and yellow-flowered tunic seemed at least two inches shorter in some places, electricity had happily ate away the material. A nice circle of reddened skin showed on her side where a stray bolt had hit her. Further down, her jeans had its own moderately-sized burn marks showing her flashes of irritated skin here and there. She eyed the hair that was over her shoulder, seeing a few seared ends and the frizzy-ness. She'd gotten off easy. _Really _easy considering had the volts been high enough, and she knew they could be, she would be dead.

She pursed her lips as she walked around the pedestal. "If you did that because I'm a traitor, then that was just a waste of power. Yeah, yeah, I know. Watch out, evil Áine is coming for you." She snorted. "I'll have you know I'm actually trying to do something _good_. Your master is _alive_. The activation of your barrier is proof of that but I can't do a damn thing without being shocked to Uranus. If I find Valkyrie and she _is _dying, then _you _have to be there to restore her powers and speed up her healing properties. So stop all ready, would you?"

She sighed as the electrical currents continued to pulse around the dome. She hadn't really expected a reprimand to work but, still, she thought it had been worth a try. The golden-haired woman spun on her heel to face another ivory pedestal. "Fine. Time for a different approach."

* * *

"Now, Mr. Shields, you have convinced me, at the very least, that you would be accepting and willing to care for Hotaru and her unusual circumstances. However, I am still unsure of how stable an environment you would be able to offer her."

Darien gave a calm nod as he glanced down at his folder. "I understand, Doctor Vigil. I know I am young but I would offer the most stable environment I possibly could for Hotaru. I know what it means to live in an orphanage and I have every desire to keep her out of that system."

"What about foster care?" prompted Dr. Hiroshi as he looked up from his notes. "Would she not go there?"

Ms. Une winced. "Usually when a parent or guardian is incapacitated such as Hotaru's mother is, the right of guardianship is passed to the next of kin. Such as a father or grandmother. Hotaru's situation, however, is special. Since neither she nor her mother had identification and no other family has stepped forward or been found, she should by all rights be moved into the foster care system."

The psychologist frowned in confusion. "Then what is the problem? I know that isn't the most ideal situation but…"

"No, no." Ms. Une shook her head. "Usually it would be the solution but as I said, Hotaru is _special_. Sadly, there is already a limited number of families available to house more children in light of the youma attacks. These past few months have shown an unusual increase in the number of foster children and a significant decrease in the number of available families. To make matters worse, that number drops even further when you take into account Hotaru herself. Not many families are willing to take in children that are mute; they find it too difficult."

Mrs. Taiko was nodding in understanding. "It is indeed true, gentlemen, and exactly the reason a family has not already been contacted. Only two families are able to house Hotaru but neither are committed to the idea. One family already has six children living with them and do not know if they can handle taking care of another. They are worried Hotaru's mother will not make a recovery and they will be put into financial ruin. The other family has three small children and are afraid that Hotaru's mother _will _make a full recovery. They believe their own children will have already become too attached to understand why she would be leaving forever. We, after all, cannot guarantee that Hotaru will stay in Tokyo, let alone Japan."

"Yes," added Ms. Une, taking over for the woman, "And it is not within Hotaru's best interests for her to leave and stay with a family outside Tokyo. She needs what available time she _does _have with her mother in case of an ill-fated death. Which only leaves us with the option of an orphanage."

"And me." Darien commented with stern eyes. "I am fully willing and capable of taking care of Hotaru. No matter how long it takes."

Mrs. Taiko folded her hands and placed her chin atop them. "I understand your desire to keep Hotaru out of the system, Mr. Shields, I honestly do. But… would you truly be capable of taking care of a four-year-old child? Especially one that will need the attention Hotaru shall need? You previously mentioned that you are enrolled at Tokyo University under their pre-Med program. How can you possibly hope to raise a child under such a rigorous major at such a competitive school?"

Darien paused, looking down as he thought about what he _would _do. He realized there really was only one thing _to _do and it didn't bother him nearly as much as he thought it would."To be honest," he began slowly as he made eye contact with everyone in the room, "I did not completely think through every aspect of my decision before I walked into this room. I only cared about Hotaru and her welfare and I still do. With that in mind, mid-terms are coming up in a few weeks time and then I will have a month off for Winter Break. During that time, if Hotaru's mother has yet to awaken and no other family found, I will gladly drop my course load in favor of solely raising her."

* * *

"Where could he be?" Ami mumbled, wandering into the center of the park for the third time. She'd gone everywhere possible in the park but Darien was _nowhere _to be found. She sighed, deciding to sit at a vacant chessboard table to take a break. After a long moment of looking at the people walking past, searching for the familiar college student, she felt despair begin to set in. It had been hours since she'd begun her search this morning and there hadn't been a single word or sight of him being _anywhere_. It was as if he'd decided to disappear off the planet for the day. _'What I wouldn't give for Makoto to be here right now.'_ She thought wistfully, _'She would know what to do. She--she would have the courage to tell Princess Serenity, Luna, and Rei what she thought about Serena being a traitor. She'd tell them to shove their theories and accusations where the sun doesn't shine and--and she'd be here helping me too.'_

Abruptly the bluenette felt tears trailing cold paths down her face. She couldn't believe how much she missed Makoto; she'd only known the girl for a few short months but still knew that she'd lost one of the best friends she would ever have in her life. There was no other person like the tall, spunky, and quirky brunette. She was one of a kind and now she couldn't even be remembered and honored because her death had been so unnatural. It was just… just so _unfair_. She'd only been sixteen and had her _whole _life ahead of her. She would never get a chance to open that bake-shop or have that big family she'd always secretly daydream about. She'd never have a chance to continue to swoon over that boy in her English class again. _'And--and she'll never get to try out that new pudding recipe she'd created and I'll never see Serena begging her for some of her lunch everyday.'_

Her breaths began to shutter, her shoulders shaking as she lost herself in her emotions. _'And if I never prove Serena isn't a traitor, I'll never get to watch as she improves in her math class finally. Or--or get a chance to chide her for not doing her homework again. We--we'd have to be strangers just so I could protect her. Then… then I'd lose another of the best friends I've ever had. Why is everything crumbling apart? Is--is this the price of trying to do something good and protecting the world? You can never be happy?'_

* * *

Áine took a shaky breath as she knelt down on the dusty ground, knowing that a fine layer of the unusual dust would stick to her jeans but not caring. She smiled slightly as she saw her topaz; it was a lighter color than the last time she'd seen it. "At least you have faith in me." She murmured gratefully as she ran her hand along the invisible barrier keeping her from the possession. _"Bí sláintiúil, bí láidir, bí saor."_ She whispered reverently, "_Anam. Fuascailt.(1)"_

Her smile turned watery as the wavering golden dome disappeared from her topaz. _Finally_. Finally after ten-thousand years she was getting what as stolen from her. She took another shaky breath as her hands slowly cupped the topaz and lifted it up to her face. "Hello, my precious." She gave a little laugh as the gem glowed in reply to her words. "I missed you too. We really have been separated from far too long but now… now I can fix that."

With a smile she lowered the topaz until it was level with the center of her chest between her breasts, then slowly began to push it inside her body. Seconds later she winced as golden sparks flew from the gem, resisting the reentry. "Come on, come on." She muttered desperately, "You can't corrupt me more than I already am. I promise. I'll be okay. Just… go back inside. _Please_, I need you to help me."

It took a few moments but slowly the gem began to magically seep into her body, returning to where it rightfully belonged. The woman immediately felt her body began to change and barely managed to place her hands out to keep her upright as she began to tilt forward. She took deep, heavy breaths as she fought to keep stable. She wouldn't let that corruption, that _darkness_, make everything worse. It was her own fault for letting the topaz gain even a _hint _of darkness so that meant she should be able to control it. She was finally doing something right and she would let no one or nothing get in the way of that. She refused.

Slowly her breaths evened out as the fight inside of her stopped. She gave a small smile as she opened her eyes and shakily stood to her feet. _'Now I'll have something to say to the next bastard that calls me soulless.'_ Her eyes slid to Valkyrie's emerald again or, more specifically, the barrier around it. "As for you, let's see how long you last against me and my reclaimed full powers." She snapped out her heart-link chain with a devious grin as she walked toward the pedestal.

"_Stunning Whip of Wrath!"_

* * *

"And a job, Mr. Shields…?" Dr. Vigil asked carefully, "What would you do about a job? I am positive Doctor Hiroshi will agree with me when I say that Hotaru is too vulnerable to be place with strangers, such as in a daycare or pre-school. She will need a full time guardian and a great deal of attention. And, while you would be reimbursed for her expenses like a foster family would, that will not cover everything."

"I do not have a current job and I will not need one for a few years to come. Even then it is debatable. I, also, will not require reimbursement. I would prefer that that money is given to other families that are in need of it." Darien answered confidently. When the other's raised disbelieving eyes, he fought against the urge to grin. "As I have stated, when I was informed of my surname and family, a stranger was the one to tell it to me. That stranger was in fact my father's, and now my own, lawyer. Through him, I have gained knowledge and access of a… _sizeable _inheritance."

"How sizeable is this inheritance of yours?" Ms. Une questioned as she picked up her pen and poised it over her legal pad, ready to write the number down. "Would it be sufficient enough to support both yourself and the child for possible years to come?"

"Without a doubt, ma'am." Darien smiled faintly as he opened his folder and pulled out two sheets of paper. After studying them for a second to make sure they were the correct ones, he passed them over to the social worker. "What you have in your hands, Ms. Une, is a biyearly report that my lawyer sends me. This is the latest one, received back in June. I will be receiving another in a little over a month and would be more than willing to share it with any one of you if requested."

Ms. Une's eyebrows rose sharply as she studied the papers in her hands. It took everything she had not to blow through her teeth. _'Certainly more than I will make in __**fifteen years **__time.'_ With a slight shake of her head, she passed it onto her right. Dr. Hiroshi skimmed over the facts and figures to zone in on the number at the bottom of the second sheet. His brow crinkled and he quickly handed it over to Mrs. Taiko before jotting down the number. She, in turn, took her time at each notation and figure. She glanced over at the seemingly calm Darien as she passed the papers over to Dr. Vigil. "You have invested wisely, Mr. Shields. Some of the stocks you own are quite notable for their value."

He gave a slight smile. "Thank you, ma'am. I'm afraid I cannot take all the credit, however. My lawyer is a very wise man."

A loud whistle drew everyone's attention to Dr. Vigil. His eyes had flared wide and when he looked up, he flushed a slight red. "Yes. Wise investments, Mr. Shields." He offered as a way of apology, ducking his head slightly as he quickly handed the paperwork back to Darien.

"Thank you, Doctor Vigil." The younger man answered with an amused shake of his head.

Mrs. Taiko cleared her throat to regain everyone's attention. "You have proven that you have a more than acceptable income, Mr. Shields. I no longer have any doubt that Hotaru will be well provided for fiscally."

"You are worried that I would not be an attentive guardian." He stated knowingly. He watched all the others nod hesitantly, making him crinkle his brow in thought. "Is there a specific reason or it is just my own age that makes you hesitant?"

"You are _eighteen_." Dr. Hiroshi pointed out logically. "In my eyes, you are still a child yourself. And, in a general sense, eighteen year olds are … how do I say this?"

"Irresponsible." supplied Dr. Vigil, sending Darien an apologetic smile. "It _is _true. Generally."

"I agree. Generally speaking, eighteen year olds are not responsible but I am not one of them." The young man insisted in return. "I refuse to squander my inheritance and do not indulge in any activities such as drinking alcohol, smoking, or anything else of the sort. I am always in bed at an appropriate time and do not keep odd hours _--'__**Now**__. Since I'm not Tuxedo Mask anymore.', _he added with a mental wince_--_ unless I am studying for an important exam. On that subject, I am always attentive in school and do all the work that is asked of me. I even volunteer here at the hospital monthly."

"He _does _volunteer here." Dr. Vigil commented as he placed his chin in his hand. "I will gladly pull out his logged hours from my documents if any of you would like to see visual proof. Of course, I'm sure he has a log of them in his documents as well."

"No, no." Mrs. Taiko stated with a smile, stopping Darien's nod. "I think I can speak for all of us when I say that the fact your financial affairs are in such an impeccable condition, especially given your age Mr. Shields, is sufficient proof that you are more than likely speaking the truth about everything else."

He smiled gratefully, even if no one was _entirely _confident in him. "I _am _speaking the truth. Every word."

"Now that has been settled," Ms. Une continued on with the evaluation with a slight smile and shake of her head. "I believe we should get to know your character, Mr. Shields. We can start with you telling us what you do in your free time, when you are not volunteering or at school. Interests, hobbies perhaps?"

* * *

Fate was smiling on him, he was positive of it. Zoisite absently leaned against a tree truck as he watched the familiar woman sitting at a chessboard table. They were near the middle of a park, which one he had no clue, and to be honest he didn't really care. All he cared about was the petite blue-haired figure sitting so familiarly at the game he had taught her to play. He would have been content to just stand and watch her --so close yet so far away-- but once he saw a hand dash across her eyes, he was moving instinctively.

It was only by the time that he was sitting across from her did she became aware of him. She glanced up, surprised, before quickly staring down at the board between them listlessly. His lips pressed into a thin line as he spotted the red-rims around her eyes and the pinkish tint her nose had; he was willing to bet his laptop that _neither _was from the cold chill. _'Albray…' _He sighed inaudibly, trying to think of anything to say, before looking down at the board as well. Inspiration hit him and he quickly set to straightening out the black pieces on his side before reaching over and adjusting her white ones. He could feel her watching him curiously now but she still hadn't said a word so he took it upon himself to. He looked up, a cautious hope in his eyes. "Would you care to play? I find chess always seems to make everything better."

She smiled, her lips barely curving upward, and nodded. "I would like that."

"Good. Then, please, ladies first." A delighted smile appeared on his face as she moved a pawn into play but it slipped slightly as she began to study him when she looked back up; he could feel her eyes probing him for the reason he seemed so familiar. If they had been in any other circumstances, he might have told her that her soul must be recognizing him from so long ago; it would have made her blush and him grin. But he was positive she was remembering the Dark Kingdom general and not _him_ and he didn't want to disrupt that fine line and push her into noticing the similarities. In a defensive movement, he hunched his shoulders and drew in his coat around his face as he finally moved one of his chess pieces. "It seems to be getting chillier, isn't it?" He commented in explanation as her brow furrowed. _'This is really bothersome. I want to meet her eyes and tell her who I am. __**What **__I am to her.'_ "Your turn."

She looked around curiously, seeing the gray clouds hovering in the sky. "I really hadn't noticed but the temperature _is _dropping. I suppose we are going to have an early winter." Her lips pressed into a thin as she looked down at the chessboard and moved another pawn. "Your turn again."

Zoisite's smile widened as he noticed the girl's attire. A white cardigan and pale blue dress; it was a wonder she _wasn't _freezing but, then again, this was Albreda he was talking about. She could probably walk into a snowstorm with that same outfit on and not be phased in the least. Not that she would, of course; she was too sensible for that. Instead she'd make sure to have a parka, snow boots, thick winter gloves, probably a survival kit in case of an emergency… He suppressed a grin at the thought.

"Check."

He blinked in shock then grimaced as her clam voice drifted into his ears. Apparently more than one turn had gone by and he'd simply been studying her and mindlessly moving his pieces with no strategy whatsoever. He took a minute or two to observe the position of every piece and their possible movements before making a move of his own. "Would you care for a friendly wager?"

* * *

All the professionals rose their eyebrows as the man stopped speaking. Going to an arcade-café where a friend works and his friend Serena spends a lot of time. Taking walks in Tokyo Park. Visiting the University's botanical garden. Exercising. Reading. _Studying_. Dr. Vigil decided to ask the question on everyone's mind. "That is all? No other hobbies or activities?"

Darien smiled in embarrassment, shrugging lightly. "Occasionally I get dragged to a movie or to play a game of basketball by my friend Motoki. I have a zeal for knowledge and am willing to help someone in need. You will find that I am a simple person. I have no need to party recklessly or partake in any other activities that will only cause more trouble than they are worth."

Ms. Une placed her chin on her upturned palm. She looked baffled. "I must say, Mr. Shields. You seem like a model citizen. One could even say perfect. You have never even been in trouble with the law."

He smirked. "No, ma'am. Not even a parking ticket."

"We know." Mrs. Taiko looked slightly dazed but was nodding her head in agreement. "The background check and fingerprint report you gave us told us as much. Honestly speaking, I believe the reports cleared some of the doubts we had about you. We were all very hesitant to even agree to this meeting, despite the fact the Director decreed it urgent."

"As if we still aren't hesitant to do anything else." Dr. Hiroshi grumbled before clearing his throat. Darien did his best not to glare; _he _was the one that needed to be convinced the most, he decided. "Now what of your residence, Mr. Shields? Could you please give us a verbal description before the physical evaluation."

He nodded, trying to focus back on the task at hand. It was starting to feel like a dream again. "Yes, sir. I live in the Moto-Azuba Tower Apartments."

Mrs. Taiko rose a curious eyebrow. "That is in a quite well-known neighborhood, Mr. Shields. Quite… _expensive_, as well."

He nodded again, this time in slight embarrassment. He knew what she, and no doubt everyone else, thought: a sign of squandering his inheritance. "Yes, ma'am. The neighborhood is also one of the safest and quietest, what I considered a requirement when I began my search for a home. There is also the fact that that particular apartment complex was the only one willing to offer me a lease, given I was sixteen at the time."

Everyone rose their eyebrows at this. "Why only sixteen?" Ms. Une asked curiously, "Should you not have been at the orphanage until you were eighteen?"

"I tested for and was accepted into Azuba Technical Academy, so the government granted me early release. I had arranged with the school to stay at their limited dorms but word had gotten out about my history and inheritance…" He trailed off with a wince. "To make a long story short, I loved the school curriculum but not the students so I moved to an apartment instead of the dorms."

Dr. Vigil nodded understandingly, bringing the others back to focus. It was one thing to be surprised at knowing the young man had gone to the finest high school in Tokyo, it was another to dwell on it. "Could you please finish your description, Mr. Shields?"

"Certainly. As I said, I live at the Moto-Azuba Tower Apartments. It is near a number of amenities, including Juuban Shopping District and the park, giving me easy access to a playground and zoo for Hotaru. The apartment I lease has one bathroom and two bedrooms so she would be able to have her own room and space. I understand, of course, that I would need to make adjustments so her safety would be ensured at all levels but I would be more than willing to."

"Would you be willing to give me a tour on short notice?" Ms. Une asked after a pause, "As the social worker, it will be my job to evaluate the apartment and I would like to do it as soon as possible."

He nodded, a smile on his face. "Yes, of course. I'd be more than happy to. Any time in mind?"

The woman's eyes flickered in thought. "Would ten o'clock tomorrow morning be acceptable? That is my earliest available slot, I believe."

"Then ten clock it is." He quickly informed her of what floor level he lived on and the apartment number, as well as the complex's address, before turning back to everyone else.

"Now, Mr. Shields." Mrs. Taiko began hesitantly. She was fidgety with her pen, Darien noticed. "This is where we come at an impasse in our meeting."

His eyebrows rose. "Why is that ma'am?"

"You would seem to be an exceptional influence for the patient to be around, Mr. Shields." Dr. Vigil spoke confidently but there was a crease in his brow, "I know no doubts you would be thoroughly dedicated to her well-being and seeing to it that her best interests are meet for however long she was in your care."

"I agree." Dr. Hiroshi looked reluctant to say anything but he still did, meeting Darien's dark blue eyes with stern brown ones. "You also exhibit an excellent understanding and undertaking in proper work ethnics. Not to mention morals. Hard-working, dedicated, respectable… you are a fine young man."

Ms. Une was smiling somewhat sadly at Darien's confused expression. "I have confidence in all that you've stated today, Mr. Shields. You truly are a remarkable person."

"Unfortunately, you are biased. We cannot take all that you say at face value. We may have confidence in what you say but the government may not," Dr. Vigil explained gently, "and they are going to have the final say in Hotaru's guardianship. She is their ward until her mother awakens or other family is found."

Darien was silent, unsure of what to say. He couldn't say that he didn't expect this; he himself had been a ward of the government for a number of years and it only made sense that Hotaru would be too, but the numbness had returned. He felt like an outsider watching as these people decided if they were going to give him the benefit of the doubt, let alone a chance to continue on with this case. He absently ran a hand through his hair, watching the others waiting patiently for Mrs. Taiko to decide what to do. The refined woman was tapping her manicured fingernails against the large table top in thought. _'Such a careless gesture,' _He observed with narrowed eyes, _'for the woman that determines how this meeting will end.'_

"Three references." She finally stated after a few long, silent, and completely agonizing moments. She gave Darien a piercing stare as he absently straightened up in his seat. He blew out the breath he didn't know he was holding, grinning gratefully. She sighed. "If you give us three references to interview and speak with, Mr. Shields, we will be able to add their testimonies to our own personal notes. I am allowing you to continue this process because I have faith that Hotaru would be in capable hands. Do _not _disappoint me."

"I won't, ma'am." He couldn't stop smiling. "Are there any specific people you would like to interview?" Mrs. Taiko was looking at everyone expectedly but her eyes would slid over to him every few seconds. As he looked to the others as well, he saw Ms. Une and Dr. Vigil scribbling away furiously at their notes. It was Dr. Hiroshi that finally spoke first.

"Your closest friend." He insisted as he laid down his pen to eye the young man, "When we interview him or her, we can get an insight on you _and _your choice of friends and acquaintances. Besides that, I feel it is important to have a third party questioned to see if they believe you would be a proper guardian. A close friend would know you the best."

Darien nodded. "Understandable. If you don't mind however, I would like to ask these references first to see that they are comfortable with being interviewed. I do not want them put on the spot with this situation."

"Acceptable." Mrs. Taiko stated firmly as she slightly leaned back in the leather chair, "You will have one week to do what you need to do. Just be sure we have your references' contact information as soon as you get their consent. I'm going to be frank with you, Mr. Shields, since I am giving my permission to finish out with this process. There is a grain of truth to the rumors surrounding Hotaru's imminent departure from the hospital. We can only afford to house her for _two _more weeks. We have neither the supplies nor the space to offer a healthy child sanctuary." Darien frowned at this, hating the coldness of a place that should be where you heal and recover. Mrs. Taiko sighed at seeing the man's expression. "I agree with you, Mr. Shields. It isn't morally right but that does not change the facts. However, since I do not want Hotaru and her condition to be subjected to an orphanage, I am doing something unprecedented. I am willingly to speed up these proceedings tremendously."

Everyone was looking at the woman in shock now. Apparently it had been news to them as well. "Mara…?" Dr. Hiroshi asked hesitantly, "Has the Director given permission for this?"

The russet-haired woman nodded once. "Yes, I asked him early this morning if it would be possible and he has agreed it would be best for the patient." She focused back on Darien. "Mr. Shields, what this means is that we will not go through a lengthy process. We will not re-question you and your references endlessly. We will not deliberate for a drawn-out amount of time. We have listened to you and will listen to your references. Your home will be inspected for suitability and the others and I will review your case in depth once everything is done. Then that will be all, we will make our decision and inform the government of it. A judge will have a chance to review your case and he, or she, will make the final decision. No second chances or second guesses. You will either be granted guardianship or you won't."

He swallowed thickly. "Yes. I understand. I believe that is best for Hotaru as well."

"Good. We truly cannot dawdle in this. Now, does anyone else have a suggestion for a reference?"

"Someone that would be able to prove to us you know how to care for children." came Dr. Vigil's proposal, "I would like to speak with someone that has seen you interact with children. Possibly ones that you have babysat."

Darien's brow furrowed as he tried to think of anyone before it dawned on him. "…There is someone I can ask. My neighbor; I have watched his young daughter on occasion."

"Good. I would also like to interview someone older than you." Ms. Une added, "This is because I am assuming the other two references are approximately your age. I think it would be best to speak with an elder you knew growing up as a child and kept in contact with. They would be able to determine the consistency of your behavior."

Darien rose an eyebrow at the request but supposed it made sense. They were trying to make sure that the person he was presenting was accurate; that neither he nor his friends were fooling them. "No problem. I believe Mr. Nihau, who runs the orphanage where I was last sent to live, would be more than willing to be interviewed. Even after I moved out on my own, I made sure to have regular contact with him. He is a good man."

"Yes. I know Mr. Nihau personally." Ms. Une smiled at Darien softly. "He is indeed a good man. Not to mention an excellent judge of character and well-known in the community. He would be just the person to interview in this case and I have all his contact information on hand."

Darien gave his own smile but had nothing to add so he stayed silent. Moments later, Mrs. Taiko gave a firm nod before standing up, flashing a bright smile to everyone. "I do believe that is all we will be able to accomplish today, ladies and gentlemen. Have a good day."

The dark-haired man quickly stood up and bowed to each person as they filed out; their faces were back to polite business smiles again. _'One obstacle down.' _He thought to himself as he gathered his belongings, _'How many more to go?'_

* * *

Áine coughed lightly as she waved a hand in front of her, trying to clear the smoke from her field of vision. _'Okay. Going for a full-out attack didn't work either. I really should have planned this whole thing out better, I think. The damned barriers just won't budge.' _She glanced down suddenly to one of her clinched hands. _'Or,' _she amended herself as she opened it to reveal a blackened gem, _'it's Valkyrie, Albreda, and Kunzite's gemstone barriers that won't budge.'_ As she turned the object this way and that, looking for even a flash of red, a flame began licking at her fingers. "Oh, _now _you want to put up a fight."

Rei's had been too easy to get out. The barrier should have been a dome-shaped wall of fire and given her third degree burns _easily_, like how Valkyrie's had electrocuted her and threw her into a wall. There was no telling what it was supposed to do when you _held _it, even, but instead the fire wall have given a few little flashes of fire that were easily avoided. The gem itself was only warm to the touch; hardly a fight at all. _'What to do with you.'_ She wondered, _'I can't give you to Rei. That'd just make things worse than they need to be. You'd give that witch way too much power.'_ Her eyes light up suddenly. _'Actually. I know just what to do with you.' _She grinned as she slid the blackened ruby into her pocket. There wasn't enough spark left in it to burn itself through the jean material and while her skin would probably be raw and possibly blistered by the time she left, it would be all right. Being isolated, also, would make sure that it's corruption didn't spread to anything else.

Her grin slipped into a frown as she walked over to Albreda's sapphire. Much like Valkyrie's barrier, she'd tried and tried but nothing worked. The ice shield dome around it was impenetrable. Melting it didn't work, neither did trying to shatter it. When she'd given up on using her powers, she'd practically froze her fingers together then _off _by physically pounding and pulling at the shield. She flexed her fingers slightly now, feeling numbness in some and a pins-and-needles feeling in others. She was lucky she hadn't given herself frostbite, to be honest. For a while there the overall numbness and blue-discoloration had worried her until slowly they began to regain color and feeling.

Her eyes narrowed in on the last occupied pedestal in the room. _'Kunzite, what is the secret to your namesake?'_ she thought irritably. The pink gem floating in the middle looked so innocent, as if ready to be snatched any second. She knew better. _**Now**_. For the longest time, she'd always assumed that it was a clear barrier like the others; one little touch and it'd be visible. But nothing was shown, or reflected, when she struck it with her powers. Any attacks seemed to be absorbed and dispersed into nothing. She couldn't even _physically _touch the barrier. _'Yeah. My hands just __**couldn't **__get that close. It was completely impossible to touch and attack and has no adverse reaction to being attacked. So how am I supposed to get it out!?'_

Her narrowed gaze deepened into a glare. "You're as troublesome as your master." She heaved a frustrated sigh as she looked from gem to gem to gem. "What am I going to do? I just can't leave you here. Not now that I've already broken two of you out." She looked innocently at the wall behind the emerald. Scorch marks, dents, cracks, chips, _chunks _of rock on the ground. "And, you know, kinda broke the wall." She grinned deviously for a moment before she sighed again, rubbing her forehead tiredly. _'There has to be a way to free the others out, it just hasn't occurred to me yet.' _

* * *

"Mr. Shields, are you all right? The elevator has stopped."

The dark-haired man blinked, looking up to see Mrs. Taiko and Ms. Une watching him curiously. The women had left the conference room stating that they wanted to introduce themselves to Hotaru and explain how they were looking for a temporary home while her mother was sick. He'd mentioned that he was going up to the room as well and before he knew it, they'd decided it was a perfect opportunity to see how he interacted with the child and vice versa. "I apologize ladies," He said as he quickly existed the elevator before it moved on, "I was lost in my thoughts. It has been a rather busy morning."

Ms. Une smiled. "Of course. We understand how big of an undertaking this may possibly for you. Not many people in your age group would do what you are trying to accomplish."

"Hotaru is worth it." He stated simply with a smile before walking ahead of them, "If you'd just follow me, the room is just right down the hall." Once he stopped at the correct door, he hesitated and decided to give the women a word of warning. He restlessly adjust the file he still held before looking over his shoulder. "I believe the two of you know about the investigation on Nurse June?"

Mrs. Taiko's brow furrowed. "Yes, of course. That is why I am overseeing your case instead of the Director. Though I have to wonder why you know about it."

He rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Because I was the one that filed the complaint against the nurse. On Hotaru's behalf."

Ms. Une gave a little gasp. "Hotaru was the one that Nurse June was supposedly harassing?"

His eyes hardened. "Believe me, she was. Because of that, I want to warn you that Hotaru isn't exactly the friendliest right now. She… well, she had a hard day yesterday." His lips turned up in a half-smile. "She threw gelatin onto an unsuspecting nurse and I want to prepare you to avoid that."

Mrs. Taiko was nodding somberly, taking the words to heart, but there was something about her expression that told him she would be paying even closer attention to the girl now. Ms. Une, on the other hand, seemed to be trying not to laugh. "Thank you for the warning, Mr. Shields." The latter finally said after she stopped smiling, "I'll take that to mind."

He nodded and turned around. "Of course." He pushed open the door only to blink in surprise. "Or maybe not…" He shook his head, forcing himself not to stop where he stood so the women could enter. _'How in the world did she manage to do it?' _He placed his folder on the small table underneath the television but his eyes stayed fixed on the incredible sight before him.

There Serena was in a pair of black lounge pants and oversized pink shirt laying atop Hotaru's bed. That in itself he could have expected but what he _didn't _expect was Hotaru leaning against the older female's chest and loosely enclosed in an embrace. And, despite the fact she was slightly-stiff and there was no expression on her face, he could easily see how her eyes were attuned to the children's book propped up on Odango's lap. As he listened to Serena reading along quietly, her voice changing with each character, his smile widened. She sure was a miracle worker.

Just then the blonde glanced up, catching sight of him, and broke off in mid-sentence with a teasing glint in her eyes. She looked down at Hotaru and spoke in a loud stage-whisper, "Hey, Hotaru? Remember how I was saying that I wish Darien was here to read all the bear's lines? What if, instead, we have him read the crab's lines? Since they're both so grumpy all the time…" The child looked up curiously, a teasing gleam in her eyes similar to Odango's --shocking Darien even more-- but when she caught sight of the women that Serena had obviously missed, the light vanished and she visibly shrunk back into the blonde's hold. That, if nothing else, was what stopped the quiet snickers he heard the women trying to muffle behind him. Serena by that time had caught sight of the women as well and kept shooting her friend curious looks. "Darien? What's… going on?"

"Oh!" Ms. Une blushed lightly and gave a short bow. "We apologize for forgetting our manners, Miss… Tsukino, was it?" Serena nodded slowly. "I am Natsumi Une and this," She gestured to the russet-haired woman at her side who also bowed slightly, "is Mara Taiko. We are currently working on Hotaru's case and wish to speak with her."

"On… Hotaru's… case." Serena drawled out slowly. Darien knew from the look on her face that she knew exactly what the women were getting at and were here for. She skillfully smoothed out her crinkled brow into a bright smile as she looked down at the child questioningly. "Do you mind if I leave for a second, Hotaru? These nice women want to talk to you alone. I promise to finish the story as soon as they're done though and just maybe by then I can convince Darien to be the mean ol' crab, how does that sound?"

Serena's attempts to sooth the girl's frazzled nerves were in vain, however; Hotaru simply held on tighter, burying her face into the older girl's waist. With a sigh, the blonde shot Darien a pleading glance but he was already on the other side of the bed. As he bent down to speak to the child, Serena looked over at the women to see both wearing carefully blank expressions. She knew that they were absorbing every single detail of what was happening, though. Yet, despite that, what baffled her was that neither was volunteering to help, or even leave and come back later. The girl was obviously nervous and panicked at even the _prospect _of talking to them, why not come back later, like in a few days when she understood what they were there for? _'Something's going on here and I feel completely out of the loop.'_

"That's better." She looked back down to see Darien had succeeded in managing to get Hotaru to lift her head up slightly and look up at him. He had that soft smile on his face she was beginning to be used to seeing when he was with the girl. "Do you remember what I told you a few days ago? About how no one can make you talk if you don't want to?" Hotaru gave a hesitant nod, glancing over at the two quiet woman. She glared as they smiled and waved.

Darien fought the urge to smirk as the women's smiles wilted just a little before returning even brighter than before. He was sure they'd both had their fair share of less-than-pleasant children but he was also sure they'd never met one quite like Hotaru. _'I suppose it's a good thing she doesn't have any food in range.'_ "Hotaru," he began softly, prompting her to snap her gaze back to him. He still couldn't believe that she was actually _listening _to him; he'd been so sure that she would have just glared at him when he moved to the bed. "can you promise not to be rude to the nice women? They won't hurt you, I promise. Or say anything bad about you either."

Serena scowled at the memory of Nurse June. That woman was a witch, through and through. _'I really should feel bad for slapping her but I still don't. How could she say such things? Especially about a sweet little kid like Hotaru and Darien when he was little too.'_ She looked down to see the said people having a staring contest before getting a wicked gleam in her eyes again, reaching down to tickle the child. Caught off guard, the dark-haired girl gasped and began to squirm away. "Come on, you…" She giggled, "What's with the sour face today?"

Hotaru was trying to throw her a glare (which really was too much like Darien's) but Serena knew it wasn't genuine. The girl was hurt and doing everything she could to push people away in order to protect her fragile heart. _'But she's never had me around before!' _She thought with another giggle as she began to tickle her small friend under the arms. The girl was squirming like crazy but still wasn't outright shoving her assailant's arms away and crying. That, she knew, was the sign she'd gone too far and made Hotaru more upset. _'I absolutely refuse to let her be a meanie and grump! Most people are good, she just needs to regain her trust again to see that. And I'll be right here to help her do just that!'_

Darien watched the two females on the bed, catching sight of Hotaru trying to contain her giggles, before grinning himself and taking over Serena's abandoned spot: the ever ticklish stomach. After a few minutes of their combined efforts, the little girl finally let out a handful of giggles as she continued to squirm around in Serena's lap. At the sound, both of them grinned before throwing triumph looks at one another. "Success!"

Hotaru watched as they gave each other goofy grins and what Serena called a "high-five", knowing it was all to try to get her to laugh again. She really tried to scowl but she just couldn't find it in herself to do it right now. It wasn't her fault --or theirs-- that she was ticklish. She used to always laugh when Puu played with her and tickled her. At the reminder of her guardian and the empty body that was a few floors down, her face blanked again. She looked up to see Serena's large eyes looking at her in curiosity and before sighing. She would listen to the two ladies; she still glared as she looked over at them though. Something told her they were some type of doctors or something like them. She didn't like doctors or healers anymore.

Darien blinked as he followed Hotaru's glare to the two women; he'd forgotten that they were both there. He shook his head as everything he was trying to do slammed back into him. "Does this mean you won't be mean to the nice ladies?" He asked the child curiously as he looked back at her. She glanced back at him, staring at him for a silent moment, before slowly nodding her head. He smiled. "That's a girl. And, remember, you don't have to talk if you don't want to." Again she nodded slightly.

"Does this mean I can breathe now?" Serena gasped, faking a lack of oxygen. Hotaru looked down curiously to see she'd grabbed a hold of the blonde's shirt with her right hand, unknowingly pulling it down and making it pull against the back of the lady's neck. She glanced over at her other arm to see that the fingers outside of her cast were clutching Darien's hand. She furrowed her brow and let go of them both hesitantly. She couldn't remember grabbing either one of them during the tickling or afterwards.

Once Hotaru crawled out of her lap, taking the abandoned book with her, Serena smiled and gave her a quick hug. When the child froze, yet again caught off guard, she quickly hid a frown and let go much faster than she wanted to. _'We'll get you to trust people again, Hotaru. I promise.'_ She thought determinedly as she climbed down off the bed, waving off Darien's hands as he tried to help. 'I'm fine. Don't worry." She insisted as she saw him narrow his eyes; she turned back to Hotaru with a grin. "We'll both just be right outside the door, okay?"

Her words were calm but she still felt slightly nervous for both the girl and the two women to be left alone. She cast her eyes around, sighing in relief when she spotted no food. _'I have to say Hotaru has a mean throw though. She almost got the nurse right in the eye with the second gelatin.'_ She quickly slapped a hand over her mouth to smother her giggle._ 'It was just too funny. Even if I did feel bad for him.'_ Darien rolled his eyes at Serena's antics, knowing exactly what she was thinking about. He looked over at Hotaru and gave a reassuring smile. "We'll be right outside, like Serena said, all right? If you need us, all you have to do is open the door and we'll see you."

Hotaru nodded obediently, already deciding that she would race out to them or throw something if the women _were _mean. She knew sometimes that people lied to other grownups, so even if Darien and Serena said they were nice, they could be mean. She knew exactly what she'd throw at them too.

"Okay." Darien shook his head in amusement as he finally stood up. _'Poor Ms. Une and Mrs. Taiko won't know what hit them.'_ He shot them a quick look to see them mumbling to each other, only for them to stop as they noticed his attention. _'Why do people always do that? It's only obvious.'_

"Kay, sweetie." Serena giggled again, playfully rubbing the girl's short locks, before beginning to walk away slowly. "Be back in a bit." She glared at Darien as he tried to help her. "Oh, _now _you want to be nice?" She grumbled to him as they walked past the women. They were begging to fidget, growing impatient despite their interest in watching them. "I'll have you know," She said as Darien opened the door, "that it took _three _hours to get all that paint out of my hair last night. You really should read the crab's lines. Both of you are just so…so _crabby--_"

"_Serena."_

The girl's giggles and the man's groans faded away as the door closed behind them. Immediately Serena eased herself down beside the door, wincing slightly as her muscles protested at the movement. "You sure you're okay?" She looked up at Darien, seeing the "hawk eyes" he seemed to be watching her with.

She rolled her own eyes. "Since when have you become my mother, Darien? I'm fine. I've _been _fine for a few days already. I'm just stiff from not using my muscles a lot this week. Nothing else, I swear." He frowned but said nothing as he slid down beside her. After a few moments of silence, he looked over to see her with her ear pressed against the door. She released it soon after with a grumble, apparently not hearing anything, before raising her eyebrows at him. "So are you going to tell me what's going on yet or what?"

"So nosy." He smirked at her glare before sighing when it didn't lighten up. He closed his eyes and let his head fall against the wall. "I will. I need to ask you something anyways."

"Then fire away." She smiled as she bumped his shoulder but when he didn't do anything in reply, it slipped into a frown. "You can tell me anything, Darien. You should know what by now."

He peered open one of his eyes, eyeing her out of the corner of it. That solemn, serious expression must have got to him because he instantly went into explanation. "It started with Nurse June's visit…"

* * *

The stakes had been set in their bet. Nothing too ridiculous or wild; something perfectly acceptable for two strangers: a name given to the winner. Ami watched her opponent curiously as he captured one of her knights and placed it beside her other capture pieces. "Yesterday, you said you were in Japan on business?"

He looked up, startled, before nodding. "Yes." His expression suddenly broke into a frown. "Hopefully everything goes as planned but it doesn't seem as if it will thanks to Com-- my _boss_."

She rose an eyebrow as she captured one of his bishops. "What do you mean?"

He tapped the side of the small rectangular table distractedly. "You know when we ran into one another yesterday, I had left my hotel room with every belief that my boss was making the biggest mistake --or rather _mistakes_-- of his life. I felt that he was a imbecile, destroying the …company he had created by making foolish and unbelievable decisions."

She pursed her lips as he moved stealthily and captured her remaining rook. "And now?"

He smiled slightly. "Now I've come to realize that, in all honestly, I should not have been surprised. He truly, _honestly _has been going about in everything the way he thought was best. He had been alone for so long and became used to only relying on himself and his ability to make decisions and, well, he isn't very good at making them. Excellent teacher and advisor but awful when it comes to what to do himself. Though that does not mean his actions are justified. I will still be angry with him for sometime, I believe."

"What has he done, exactly?"

He looked up, grinning, but shook his head in the negative. "Sorry, confidential. I would get in trouble if I told you. Even if you are a beautiful woman who plays chess brilliantly."

She gaped at him for one stunned moment before she flushed a deep red. "I--I…" _'No one's called me beautiful before…'_ At the thought, her blush deepened until it spread to her neck.

Zoisite, in the meantime, was enjoying the expressions his dear Albreda was making. _'Ah. It is so good to be with you again. I hadn't realized I missed you __**this **__much. I thought I was handling the separation better than the others but I suppose I wasn't.' _He chuckled as she continued to stare at him. "Forgive me for rendering you speechless and so flustered. I was simply being honest but perhaps there is such a thing as too much honesty."

"It--it's all right. I just-- …no one has ever called me beautiful before." She whispered before giving an embarrassed laugh, "It was… disconcerting."

His brow furrowed as he tilted his head to the side slightly. "No one has called you beautiful before? Or told you that you are? Not even your parents?"

She blinked, remembering how her father used to tell her that when she was born all he could think about was how beautiful she was --thus deciding to name her _Ami_ because it could mean 'beautiful' in Japanese. She'd never really considered it extraordinary though, as many Japanese names meant the same thing and he was her _father_. "Well…yes." She finally answered, "Both my parents and friends have told me such. …It is just not the same when a strange man says it in a random conversation." She smiled wryly and gestured to her hair. "Usually I am on the receiving end of jeers about my hair color, not getting remarks about beauty."

"Why would anyone make fun of your hair color?" He asked, completely baffled, as his eyes slid to the mane in question. It was still the same stunning shade of blue unique to Mercurians, beautiful as it ever was. Perhaps it was a tad shorter than he remembered it being but he couldn't see anything wrong with it, or anything to make fun of either.

Ami's eyebrow rose as she suddenly began wondering if there was something wrong with the man's eyesight. "Um. My hair is _blue_." When he nodded, his own eyebrows rising inquiringly, she frowned. "People do not have blue hair. At least, not _natural _blue hair."

"You… have not met others with a similar hair color?" He asked disbelievingly.

She blinked at the question, and his tone, before shaking her head. "No. Orange, perhaps, or a shade of purple but never blue."

He frowned. "I have. It is their natural color as well, too."

"Well, then you are very fortunate."

"Wait." He stated, bringing a hand up to his forehead in thought, "Doesn't that violinist have blue hair as well? What is her name…?" She watched curiously as he continually tapped his forehead in an agitated manner. "Oh! I should know this! We're both from France!"

Her brow creased at the information. "You wouldn't happen to mean Michelle Valdete(2), do you? Because in my opinion, she doesn't have blue hair. Hers is a more… _aquamarine _color."

He nodded enthusiastically. "That's her name!" He stopped suddenly, frowning and shaking his head. "_Mee-_SHEL_. _Not _Mi-_SHEL. French name, French pronunciation, ma chérie." He stopped, horrified as he realized what he had said. _'I can't call her "my darling" when I don't even know her-- _this _her! Idiot!_' He winced as he noticed she had quirked a sharp eyebrow at him, instantly telling him she knew what the foreign words meant. "I--I mean…oops?"

"I will let it slid _if --_" Suddenly an impish grin etched itself on her face, making Zoisite pale. He knew that look and it wasn't good. "--you allow me to take a closer look at your PDA. The one from yesterday?"

He paled again, though this time for a completely different reason. He couldn't let her see it! It--it'd go against _everything_! A thousand and one possibilities and scenarios ran through his head and he liked none of them. He swallowed. "Y-you really are fascinated by it aren't you?"

She nodded, her eyes gleaming with interest. "I am. I've never known someone to invent something so sophisticated and advanced. At least, not by themselves."

"No one? Not even… yourself, by any chance?" He asked, desperately trying to redirect the conversation. Hopefully a few well-timed and placed comments would throw her into a loop, make her too involved to remember.

She blushed slightly. "I've… dabbled in electronics and the building of them. Certainly nothing like you though."

"How can you be sure?" He smiled dashingly. "You should never underestimate what you can accomplish."

"Even so, you are _hired _to do such things!" She insisted as she placed her chin in her palms, "Surely you've had experience, _training_,and while France isn't the forerunner in electronics, I am positive that--"

"I do not work in France." He interjected swiftly, "Europe, yes, but not France."

She blinked, caught off guard. "But, you said you were _from _France and... your accent. As soon as you said_ 'ma chérie'_ I recognized it for what it was. You are French."

"Yes. I was born in France. Am French. I just… I don't live there anymore. I haven't for a number of years." He clarified, looking away briefly to shake his head, before looking back to her with a smile, "I guess I'll always have that accent. It's a part of me."

She nodded slowly, wondering why the subject seemed to bother him so much but not having the courage to ask. "I know what you mean. When I speak English I still have my German accent. It just never transferred over into any other language, though. I suppose that's because I learned English in Germany."

He did a double-take of the girl; she sure didn't seem German despite the fact she looked Mercurian still. "Your Japanese is flawless though." He laughed suddenly, "I suppose I should apologize for making assumptions. I believed you were Japanese."

The bluenette smiled slightly. "Well, technically I am half and was born here. It is just that I was raised for most of my life in Germany. Until not long ago, as a matter of fact." Her eyes narrowed in on him suddenly. "I would still like to see your PDA, by the way. I have not forgotten or let it slide that you called me _ma chérie_. No matter how hard you try to distract me."

He winced before laughing. _'Same old Albry.'_

* * *

Serena's head hit the wall not far from where Darien's had a short time ago. She blew her breath all out in a rush as she looked at her companion. "Thank you." she whispered gratefully, "Thank you so much."

His head snapped up from where he'd been staring at the floor in thought. "Why are you thanking me?"

She blinked a few times as she felt moisture beginning to gather in her eyes. "I was so worried about what'd happen to a sweet girl like Hotaru if she was sent to an orphanage, especially after what Nurse June said about her."

He shook his head and gave a sad sort of smile. "Well, you're looking at an older, male version of what'd happen to her. Anti-social, cold, heartless. The list goes on really--_Ow_." He scowled and rubbed his shoulder where she'd just punched him full-on. "What was that for?"

"Don't ever say those things about yourself, Darien Shields!" She whispered furiously as she shook a menacing finger in his face. He thought she looked even more menacing as tears began slipping down her cheeks. "You are not cold! Or heartless! And, okay, maybe you are a little anti-social but, right now, so am I!" She surged to her feet, looming over him. "If you were cold or heartless, you would not be offering to give that little girl a home and practically turning your life upside down for her! A heartless person would _never _have even _thought _to do the things you want to!" She reached down and whacked his shoulder. "So don't say that!"

"All right! All right!" He cried defensively as she continued to hit him over and over. "It's no reason to resort to violence, Odango!" When the hitting abruptly stopped, he looked up cautiously to see her glaring at him. "What now?"

She wiped her tears off before crossing her arms with a frustrated sigh. "…Odango?"

"_Yeah_…" he said slowly. His brow furrowed in confusion as she began to tap her right foot impatiently. "What about it? It's your name."

Her glared deepened murderously as she pursed her lips until they were white. She reached down and began to aim at his head, barely giving him enough time to lift his arms up defensively before she began to strike.

"No!"

Hit. _"Ow!"_

"It!"

Block and glare. "Would you stop--"

"Is!"

Hit in the nose. "--it already!?"

"NOT!"

Block. "Ha! Missed me!" Darien grinned as he grabbed a hold of the blonde's hands and pulled her down next to him again. "You really should apologize." He told her twisting figure calmly, "There is only a need for one of us to be admitted to the hospital at the same time."

She snorted before grinning as something occurred to her. She stopped moving immediately. "Well that just means I have to wait a few fours before getting revenge, doesn't it!?" She laughed victoriously when he frowned, seeming to remember she was finally going to be released soon.

"You could." He nodded calmly, "Though I doubt you'd have the self-control to."

She frowned indignantly. "What does that mean--?"

"Odango. Odango. Odango. Odango." The blonde grit her teeth as Darien began to repeat her nickname over and over, a smirk on his face all the while. "Odango. Odango. Odango. Odan--"

"How old are you!?" She retorted angrily, her nerves on end. His smirk only widened as he continued on with his chant. She tried tugging out her hands again, hoping he was too involved in his mockery, but they were still in vice-like grips. She told herself to be patient, be _serene_, but there was only so much she could take after the week, or rather the _month_, she'd had. "FINE!" She declared, blowing out a frustrated sigh and feeling her bangs ruffle wildly at the action. "_But_, I will only apologize if you do too. It's only fair."

He'd abruptly stopped his chant at her declaration, his smirk becoming a victorious grin. "You first. I'm the one that received bodily harm, after all, and _you _were the one that started both our fights yesterday and kept blaming everything on me."

She rolled her eyes; he was such a baby. "I'm sorry for hitting you, Darien. Repeatedly at that. I'm also sorry that I started those fights and blamed you for everything. It wasn't right. We were both to blame."

"Apology accepted." He said somberly, a hidden twinkle in his eyes, "I apologize for participating in the fights, I should have been more respectable than that. Also, I am sorry for saying Odango is your name. I was wrong. It is Odango _Atama_. I promise to address you properly from now on."

"DARIEN!" She pulled and tugged at her hands, moving this way and that, but he held fast. She knew she should have just continued to knock him unconscious while she had a chance. "Let me go, jerk!"

"See!" He cried out, neither of them noticing the nurses and other personnel that had been drawn over by their antics and were watching them in amusement and dismay, "Jerk is your nickname for me but I can't call you Odango? How fair is _that_?"

"Because I say it is …_nitwit_!" She retorted angrily, resorting to using her feet to kick him. _'Ah! Why won't he just let me go already!?'_

"Oh, _that's _original--"

"It is to!"

"_Ahem."_

It took a few moments but both stopped their struggling and fighting to see a lab-coated doctor towering over them. He swore a murderous frown. "Is there a problem here? This is a hospital if you do not recall and I will not tolerate such foolery when others are here to recover. If you do not cease and desist, I will have to call security."

Serena squeaked in embarrassment and surged to her feet, Darien listlessly letting go of her hands. She bowed her head in shame, not even bothering to look up as she heard her companion stand behind her. "Please forgive us, Doctor Rupert. We did not mean any disrespect." She glanced up as she felt a heavy hand lay on her shoulder. Darien looked… she didn't even know how to describe it. _'It's like he's angry, worried, stressed, and concerned all into one but… he wasn't like that a second ago.'_

"I apologize, as well Do--" There was a visible strain on Darien's face as he tried to get the man's name out. Unconsciously, Serena placed a hand over the one that was tightening on her shoulder. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye, squeezing her shoulder briefly before loosening his grip a little. "We both apologize, Doctor Rupert. We simply lost track of our settings. It will not happen again."

The grey-haired man was scowling even more now as he made eye contact with Darien. "Mr. Shields, I should have known it was you." He shifted his eyes to Serena accusingly. "And you, Miss Tsukino, I am deeply ashamed. You are here in this hospital to recover and find out what is contaminating your blood." Darien's grip tightened on Serena's shoulder again, forcing her to frown in concern. "You should be in bed resting, not consorting with this man. And, God forbid, him being your boyfriend…"

"Now just wait one minute." The blonde insisted firmly. She was clasping Darien's hand almost as hard as he was gripping her shoulder now. "Darien didn't do anything wrong. We _both _simply forget where we were. We have apologized and promised it will not happen again. But,--"

"_Serena." _

She easily ignored Darien's whisper. "But, _please_, make us both feel bad about forgetting the problems in our lives for one moment! We are sorry for letting ourselves forget that that little girl in the room behind us might lose her mother or that something may slowly be poisoning me to death!"

Dr. Rupert glared down his nose. "Just see to it that it will not happen again, Miss Tsukino. If it does _I _will see to it that neither you nor your boyfriend steps foot inside this hospital again. Now, if you're just about done, I want you to return to your room and rest. You are still a patient until this afternoon and _will _act accordingly." Without another word the doctor spun on his heel and walked away, a gaggle of nurses following behind him obediently.

"_Oh!_" Serena scowled at their retreating backs, stomping one of her feet. "He makes me so mad! I wish I could throw a gelatin at him! Everyone else seems to be throwing one at people they don't like, why shouldn't I!?"

"Serena." She looked over her shoulder to see Darien staring at her with suspicious eyes. She sobered up and gulped at the intense look. "What did you mean by something slowly poisoning me to death?"

Her own eyes widened in panic before she looked away. "Nothing. Just some… stupid theory Doctor Rupert told my mom and me. It's nothing to worry about." She turned around to face the hallway and took a few steps, "You want something to eat? I'm starv--" She froze as Darien grabbed her hand and spun her around to face him.

"_No_. You said I could tell you anything and it goes both ways." He insisted as he walked right up to her. She immediately looked down at the ground between them. "Tell me, Serena. I don't give a damn if you think it's some stupid theory. I want to know." She stayed stubbornly silent, making him sigh as he placed his hands on her shoulders and squeezed them briefly. "_Please_. I just---I just want to protect you and I can't do that if I don't know what's going on with you."

"It's nothing." She whispered calmly but the shoulders beneath his hands began to shake. "Don't worry. I'm not going to suddenly keel over one day, exhausted beyond belief." She paused, biting her lip to keep her tears at bay. "I don't need you to protect me, Darien. There's nothing to protect me from anymore, okay?"

'_Exhausted beyond…' _His eyes flared wide in realization seconds after Ms. Une and Mrs. Taiko burst out of the hospital room behind them. Both of the once-refined women wore amused smiles as they attempted to brush off the pillow feathers randomly stuck to their clothing and hair. "_That _was certainly interesting." Mrs. Taiko commented to her companion as they turned toward Darien and Serena, expecting to see knowing smiles. What they saw instead was a smiling girl who looked about to cry and a shocked man who looked like he didn't know what to do.

"D-did we… miss something?" Ms. Une questioned cautiously.

With that Serena slapped on an overly-happy smile and went over to hug the women, one arm around each neck. "Darien was just telling me all about how you guys are giving him a chance to give Hotaru a home." She pulled back and offered them a genuine smile. "I really am grateful for that. I was so worried she'd be sent to a stuffy orphanage and lose herself."

Both women glanced at each other and back at the emotional blonde. Ms. Une smiled slightly uneasily. "Well, we don't want her sent to an orphanage any more than you do, Miss Tsukino, but nothing is written in stone just yet."

"Oh! I know, but I am here to help with that!" The blonde smiled even as she wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. "Darien asked if I could be one of his references and I would be more than happy to. I… was wondering if I could possibly set up a meeting now?"

"Why, yes, of course." Mrs. Taiko said quickly, as if afraid the teenager was going to change her mind, "Whatever time would be most convenient for you."

"Well, he mentioned how Hotaru can only stay for another two weeks so I'd like it to be as soon as possible, If you don't mind, that is. I want to help speed everything along."

"I don't believe we mind." Mrs. Taiko smiled. "Would you get in trouble if you went down to my office now? I'd like to show you what available times we have and then you may decide which is best for you."

"No problem. I am positive I won't get in any trouble. I just have to be back by three." As both the older women struck up conversation with one another as they all walked toward the elevator, still plucking feathers off themselves the whole way, Serena looked back at the not-so-suspiciously quiet Darien. She winced a bit as she saw the dark scowl on his face; he was mad, _beyond _mad, but it wasn't _her _fault that the doctor came up with such a stupid theory.

There was no way that some unknown …_thing_ was in her bloodstream, happily breaking down her body one day at a time. She would notice if she was unusually tired one day or--or whatever; she'd know! Of course, when she told Dr. Rupert this, he'd claimed that she wouldn't know until the "poison" was further into its stages. That slowly but surely she'd became weaker, more exhausted, not having the strength to finish mundane tasks like getting dressed. She snorted to herself as she turned her head back around. She'd show Dr. Rupert he was wrong! Thanks to the unforeseen event of not being a Senshi anymore, she'd have more energy and rest than _ever_. She'd prove that that Ami's mom was right; that it must just be a glitch in the testing or--or something _completely _normal that they weren't seeing. Because there was _no _way she was dying slowly; no way at all.

Darien watched Serena disappear into the elevator with Mrs. Taiko and Ms. Une. Despite how much she seemed to be unaffected by Dr. Rupert's theory, she couldn't hide that fear and nervousness deep within her eyes. His jaw clinched. _'Why do all these damn things have to happen to Serena? Wasn't it enough that one of her best friends died and the others think she's married to some damned Dark Kingdom general and a traitor? Not to mention being kidnapped by them in the first place.' _He rubbed his forehead in an agitated manner, a gold flash lighting up his eyes. _'Why does it always have to be Serenity?'_

* * *

'_She's handling it with the outmost care; that was a good sign, right? Because if she'd stumbled across something she shouldn't have then being careful would be the last thing on her mind. I think. Or would she pretend she'd seen nothing?' _Zoisite nervously watched his soul mate handle his PDA. Half of him was elated at her interest and enthusiasm, dying to describe what techniques he'd used and what he'd wanted to achieve in the initial creation of it. The other half of him, however, was more rational. It reminded him that they were not friends, dating, lovers, or anything else of the sort; it told him that the two of them were strangers and, as much as he hated to agree, they _were _and… and she was a _danger _to Headquarters.

If she found out his name was Zoisite or that he knew a _Nephrite _and a _Jadeite,_ there was no telling what'd happen. She believed those names represented evil men, minions of a horrid queen but… those were _their _names first. Those men had _their _faces and _their _appearances. _'But none of that matters because Albry met __**them **__first in this lifetime and will think of them when she learns mine and the others' names.'_ He sighed. He supposed he could have just lied about having the device with him but… it was _Albreda_. And that was the same reason he couldn't just refuse to show her. There was no way he was going to endanger this newfound …_thing_ between them--whatever that may be--just yet. He was too selfish to.

"Does your internet network work globally?" She suddenly asked, looking up at him curiously, "You said you worked in Europe right? But it seems to perform flawlessly here, halfway around the world."

He nodded, skillfully masking his inner anxiety. "Yes. The company I work for has its own satellite and I was able to acquire permission to utilize it when I was creating everything, actually. I wanted to make sure I could be anywhere, in any country or part of the world, and have access to everything in case of emergency. The satellite offers me that."

"Very sensible of you." She flashed him a quick smile before looking down again. The PDA was on its side, her fingers flying over the virtual QWERTY keyboard as she sought out something or other.

He grinned as he remembered his earlier thoughts. "Something we share in common, perhaps?"

She nodded, though her eyes stayed trained on the device. He wished he could see what she was _doing_. She'd said that his internet network worked flawlessly, so then what was she doing online? "Hmm… seems it won't rain until later this afternoon." His jaw dropped; she was looking at the _weather_? Out of all the things she could do that was what she chose!? She must have seen his expression because a light red seeped into the bridge of her nose. "I… like being prepared. I do not wish to be caught in a rainstorm unexpected. Especially since I did not think to put on a jacket before I left home."

He nodded._ 'A very Albry-like thing to do, truthfully.' _"Of course. I just expected you to… I don't know."

"Breakdown the infrastructure in hopes of recreating the device myself?" She suggested, giggling softly.

He laughed, his lips twitching up in a fond smile. That _also _was a very Albry-like thing to do. "Yeah. Something like that."

"I have more respect for you than that. Besides, that would mean possibly destroying the only prototype you have and then how would I get one?" He laughed again before watching in amazement as she threw in a smirk _--'a true Albreda smirk!_'-- before shaking her head. "No. I will patiently wait until you decide to market them until I do such a thing."

He hid a grin. "Perhaps I will send one to you in the near future, then. So you do not have to wait so long."

She rose an eyebrow as she looked at him. "You do not have my address. We have abandoned our chess game, even, so we still do not know one another's names."

His grin surfaced as he flicked his right wrist, her school identification card appearing between his thumb and pointer finger. "I would not be too sure about that. Juuban High School. Name: Ami Mizuno. Grade: eleven. Homeroom: 3-A with Ms. Sakura Haruna. Address: 3850 Juuban Condos, Suite 7-E." She gaped at the card, her eyes sliding up to him. She opened her mouth yet no sound came out; still, he could see the accusation in her eyes. He almost winced. "It seems I grabbed it by mistake yesterday. I went to your school this morning to return it but I was informed that you were ill." His eyes trailed up and down her person curiously. "Though you do not seem to be."

She flushed slightly, gaining a panicked look. "I was-- _am_ looking for someone. It is important that I find him, more so than attending school today. You will not inform anyone of my… untruth, will you?"

He shook his head. "No, of course not. I thought you were sick when I walked over, truthfully, so your secret is safe with me."

"Thank you, then, for both not telling and returning this to me." She finally took the laminated card, placing it in one of her sweater pockets carefully before looking back down at the PDA distractedly. _'I wonder if he __**would **__send one to me.'_ She blushed lightly. _'F-for a fee, of course.'_

"Zander." Her eyes rose up to him inquiringly, the blush fading slowly. "My name is Zander Wynne. I believe it is only fair that you know my name as well. Especially considering that the chess game had been a ruse. I had been hoping you would win, then I could have returned the card when I told you my name. Well, that and I had had a feeling a game would make you feel better."

She blinked but for some reason found herself unsurprised. "Zander… Wynne. _'To defend men'_ _'Friend'(3)_." She tilted her head to the side curiously. "For some reason I believe that fits you." She smiled. "And it did help me so I do not care if it was a ruse. I had just… become overwhelmed with everything at that point. The game did an excellent job of helping to clear my mind." She ducked her head. "Much like y-you… did."

He grinned, downright proud of himself, before sobering up. "Why do you need to find this man so much? Is--is he your boyfriend?" He couldn't help but ask, even as he mentally hit himself for doing so. He didn't want to know that his soul mate had a boyfriend that wasn't him!

"Hmm." She carefully placed the PDA on the chess table, her eyes looking at the people walking past without really seeing them. "He isn't my boyfriend. I don't have one." She finally answered, not seeing or hearing his sigh of relief, "But I need to find him and ask something. Something very important."

"Anything I can do to help?"

She sighed as she looked back at him. "No, I'm afraid not." Her eyes fell to his PDA, a wry smile on her face. "Too bad I can't GPS-track him. That would do me wonders."

His brow furrowed. _'Now that's a thought. Endymion was always giving me and the others the slip and disappearing in the Silver Millennium. And I'm sure the Senshi would appreciate knowing where Serenity always was…'_ Ami frowned at seeing the outright scheming expression of Zander's face but it quickly cleared as a familiar beeping rang out in the air.

She groaned, the first time in a long while hesitant about responding to her communicator. The battle with the hammer-youma was still fresh in her mind; Rei and Minako had fought with each other more than the youma that night. It had taken an untold number of _hours _to corner the thing and finally destroy it and a large part of that was due to the fact the two of them had bickered about anything and everything the whole time. When the sound showed no signs of letting up or stopping, she heaved a frustrated sigh and took the communicator out of her pocket. She didn't dare respond yet, not with Zander there, but still made sure she took out her transformation pen as well.

Zoisite frowned as he placed his chin in one of his upturned palms. "You always seem to be running off somewhere, aren't you?"

She looked up with a humorless smile. "Unfortunately. I--I have to go. I'm sorry. Thank you, again, for the game and everything else. They helped more than you can imagine." She glanced down, catching sight of the forgotten PDA and quickly handed it over to him. "Thank you for allowing me a closer look, as well. I officially forgive you for calling me _ma chérie _now."

He smiled as he took the black device but couldn't bring himself to laugh like he wanted to. Something was wrong with the Senshi; something _more _than Valkyrie's recent death. Albreda was going to a battle, there was no doubt about it, but she shouldn't be acting so… _resigned_ to go. He looked up, mind frantically working, but offered a smile. "I hope you feel better."

Her brow furrowed before it cleared and she giggled. "Thank you. I promise I'll be well enough to go to school tomorrow." She gave a little wave then, clutching both objects to her chest, before dashing off.

"That's not exactly what I meant." He whispered as he watched her go. He gave a start as he heard more beeping, thinking she'd left something behind, but after a moment recognized the sound for what it was. "She must have activated you accidentally." He mumbled as looked down at his PDA. The dark energy scanner was going crazy, zoning in on a source of it nearby. At first glance he thought it was the youma until it completely scanned in on the source. His head snapped up, disbelief gleaming in his eyes as he saw his soul mate running further away. "Dark… energy? From Albry? There--there's no way…"

* * *

"Yeah. Mall. Youma. I got it, I'll be right there Rei." Áine answered listlessly before disconnecting her communicator and dropping it into her subspace pocket. She sighed, glaring at nothing in particular. _Just _when she'd finally realized what she could use to break out the gemstones, a youma appears.

"Maybe Kunzite will be there though." She mumbled as she looked at his pink namesake, "That way I can bring him here and he can get out his gem himself. Waiting for our next meeting will take too long. It needs to be broken out _now_. Before she figures out what I've done and decides to hand it over to Beryl…"

She winced at the thought. She knew she was the only reason that damned woman "didn't have the complete set" --her words exactly. Her fists clinched as her mind screamed at the injustice of it all._ 'It's not fair! It's not damned fair that she's managed to find the way to bypass Kunzite's barrier and I can't.'_

--------------------------------------------------------

_She watched with abated breath as the pink gem bounced up and down in a dainty, feminine hand. It was so close, she could almost touch it, but dared not to in fear of the consequences. That didn't stop her from damning herself for her cowardice though._

"_Beautiful, isn't it Venus? So delicate. So frail." The bouncing abruptly stopped seconds before a sharp fingernail rested on top of the gemstone. "One push. One crack could destroy the last of your loved ones. Quite possibly forever."_

_She stayed silent, her eyes and face expressionless. She couldn't remember the number of nights she'd trained herself not to show her emotions, especially in the face of this woman. She knew anything could push her over the edge, though; it was only a matter of time before the dam broke and she couldn't help anything hidden anymore. Her fears, her hatred, her desperation; it could all show in a blink of an eye._

_The woman before was emotionless but she could feel the amusement in the air. "I hate you, Venus. You are quite aware of how much I despise you and the other Senshi yet… there is something I always admired about you in particular."_

_Her eyes shifted from the gem upward, curious but not showing it. "And what is that?"_

"_You know when to follow orders. Both your parents were, perhaps, the best militants that graced the Alliance. Despite the fact Cleopatra(4) followed such …unconventional means." A smirk shown in the woman's eyes. "You were raised to be a soldier. A subordinate one, that is. One who follows orders without hesitance."_

"_You were angry when I became the leader." She answered neutrally, though she knew the words would cut deep, "You were well aware that, at the time, I was the only one that noticed your true self. You had hoped that I would be named the fourth, that I would have no true power or say. But it would not have mattered because even then I would have had a say. We all had a say because we were to follow one true order and one true order only. Protect Serenity at any costs, no matter how it is done. And you were --__**are**__-- a danger to her and whatever reincarnations she may have."_

_The woman's face contorted into outright anger, momentarily making her think she'd gone to far, but after a moment it smoothed back into its own emotionless. "Your words are nothing. The past is nothing. Serenity is nothing." She turned her closed hand over, the one with kunzite inside. "And he is nothing." She opened it and both watched as the gem fell toward the blackened floor._

_She dashed toward the gemstone, uncaring how her face was a mask of emotions, but she was seconds too slow. The pink gem slid through her fingers and disappeared through the floor. Her head snapped over to the pedestal it came from, seeing it back again and gleaming with its inner light. She swallowed at her failure, not daring to look at the woman or her expression._

"_If I had ordered you not to move, you would not have dared to. Would you, Venus?" She closed her eyes tightly, not daring to answer the question even to herself. She was afraid of the answer. "I will never understand your devotion to that man. He hates you. Did you not see the Kunzite in the forces you lead on Lunaria? That Kunzite stared at you with anger. With hatred. He would have killed you."_

"_That means nothing." She whispered roughly, "He is not Kunzite."_

"_No, he is not." The woman agreed, "Yet he is a part of him. All that anger, that all encompassing hatred is only a part of the man that you love. Imagine what the rest of him would do to you if he ever saw you. To think he has not learned what else you have done. That you allowed me to kill--"_

_----------------------------------------------------------------_

Áine forced herself out of the memory roughly but knew it would come back again one day. Even after almost eight-thousand years it still haunted her and she feared it always would. _'No.'_ she whispered to herself, _'Kunzite did nothing to me when I sought him out. He still… he _still _loves me. I know it. And I'll be sure he never finds out my secret. Never. I should… I should not even be dwelling on memories. I will go to the youma battle and finish carrying out my plan. The gems will be broken out. I swear they will.'_

She nodded to herself once, sharply, before disappearing out of the room. On the floor a tear splashed down onto the darkness, momentarily revealing pure white marble before it was consumed once more.

* * *

"I'll just meet you down in the lobby, okay?" Serena sighed inaudibly as she stopped in front of her _former _hospital room, her mother right beside her. _'Twenty minutes into my freedom and I'm _still _here.'_ "I just want to do a double-check and say good-bye to Hotaru again."

Ikuko glanced down momentarily at the object in-between her and her eldest child, her lips pursed. "But, Serena… it's hospital policy to leave in a wheelchair. You know that."

"I thought I didn't have to?" The blonde whined. "I feel fine. And, besides, wouldn't it do be _better _to walk down. You know, exercise my muscles?" At the stern glare her mother sent her, she winced. "_Uh_… How about I go in and talk to Hotaru and you wait at the elevator? That way when we get down to Dad and Shingo I'm _leaving _in a wheelchair."

After a stare-down with her daughter, the girl breaking out her 'doe-eyes', Ikuko rolled her own eyes. "Fine. Only because you'd _technically_ be leaving in it." She turned the object around, walking away as Serena cheered. "Twenty minutes, Serena. Then I'm coming to get you and you'll have to leave your _room _in it."

"Thanks, mom!" The blonde grinned before pushing open the door. "Hey, Hotaru--" She stopped, the door clunking shut behind her and immersing her in darkness. Her brow furrowed as she tiptoed to the girl's bed. _'Is she asleep already?'_

"You really should have rode in the wheelchair."

The blonde gasped at the sudden voice, her back snapping up from when she was leaning over the bed to get a closer look. She blinked a few times, desperately trying to get her eyes to adjust to the darkness, before making out a shadowed figure sitting on her old bed and facing the window. Her brow furrowed. "Darien…? Is that you?"

"It's hospital policy because no one wants any patient to strain themselves too soon. Otherwise they'd be back here in no time."

'_That sure sounds like him.'_ She grumbled to herself as she crossed her arms. "What are you doing in here sitting in the dark? Where'd Hotaru go?"

"She is a very sweet girl, is she not? Yet so easily hurt. She went down to her mother's room. She was upset you were leaving, perhaps more than she had realized." He replied, his voice sounding strangely toneless and… _odd _to Serena's ears, "I myself came by to wish you well but was informed you were already downstairs and being discharged."

She laughed nervously and rubbed the back of her head; why did she suddenly feel on edge? "Yeah. I was a little overeager for a real dinner tonight, I guess. Sorry. I didn't think you'd come back. I mean, you were gone by the time I came back from Mrs. Taiko's office."

He made a noncommittal sound in the back of his throat, standing up but not moving closer to her. "I did not wish you to see my anger." He looked back at her and she gulped as the shadows made him look menacing and foreboding.

"W-what are you angry about?" She winced at her shakiness. It was just _Darien_.

"How you never can seem to rid yourself of your naivety." He grinned but she couldn't see any humor behind it. "That is not to say that I do not admire it, of course. It is just that it is both a frustrating and endearing quality about you."

She placed her hands on her hips, frowning in indignation. "And what am I so naïve about?"

He stepped into the light of the window and she winced as she saw a pair of gold-blue eyes looking back at her; she should have known. "You cannot accept what is right in front of you. That at least one of the Senshi remembers. That they are helping to poison you. Killing you slowly but surely."

She rolled her eyes. "It's a stupid _theory _Doctor Rupert made up to try to keep me at the hospital, Darien. _Nothing _is killing me!" She insisted fiercely, "And it certainly isn't them."

He said nothing for a moment, seeming to think of his next words carefully. "I recall how the day Doctor Vigil diagnosed you, he mentioned that there was an agent in your bloodstream. Something unknown. _Curiously _unknown." His gaze narrowed in on her. "I knew immediately what they had found. The Senshi powers had begun to affect your body internally."

She scoffed but it sounded nervous even to her own ears. "Where do you come _up _with these things? _Please_. I'd think I would know if that was happening to me."

"Would you?" He challenged, his strangely-colored eyes flashing angrily, "I thought and thought this afternoon when you ran off, hoping that my conclusion was wrong. And you know what?"

"W-what?"

"It isn't." He answered sharply, "After every Senshi battle, you were weak. Seemingly completely drained some times. I always believed it was because you were channeling so much energy into your attacks but I was wrong. The others never had to refrain from keeling over or had deep breaths seizing from their lungs. They never saw the times you sat down at the base of a tree, struggling to breath or how you stumbled as you dragged yourself home, determined to not fall where you were. But I did. I saw all that and more."

"You followed me." She whispered in a kind of astonished horror, "After every battle you followed me."

"Not all the time but, yes. I always had to stop myself from following you to your doorstep. Or, your window as it probably was. Before you ask, you already know I never knew it was _you_. I made sure I didn't follow you where your identity would be compromised and if I saw your transformation begin to fade, I immediately turned around and left. But I could never _stop _myself from following. I had to. I _needed _to." The gold overpowered the blue in his eyes for just a moment. "You asked me to protect you that first battle. You asked for _me_ and Tuxedo Mask was a convenient way to do so."

"So that's it?" She asked, suddenly angry, "I'm supposed to believe Ami is killing me because of what you _spied _on?"

He scowled. "If you had continued to transform, you might very well be _dead _right now yet you're worried I'm blaming _Ami_? Focus on what's important, focus on _yourself_,for once in your life! Your transformations were draining you away, _poisoning _you, every _damn _battle. It does not matter if you are Sailor Moon any longer or not; the Senshi magic is still in your bloodstream and will continue to stay there and _kill _you! And you _knew_." He hissed angrily, "Your exact words were _'I don't need you to protect me, Darien. There's nothing to protect me from anymore, okay?'_ You would never have said that unless you _knew _that it was your transformations that had been endangering you! Yet you still didn't tell me!"

"Yes, I _knew_!" She snapped back, yelling, as tears began to form paths down her cheeks unchecked, "But it isn't as if I've been hiding it all week, Darien! The doctor told me and my mom _yesterday_, just before we walked in on you and Nurse June! But you have _no _right to be angry with me! I don't _have _to tell you anything, you're _not _my keeper! Do _you _tell me everything!? No! I know for a _fact _you don't because you _still _refuse to tell me why you beat up Motoki that night so don't you dare start to lecture me!"

His fingers clinched at his sides and both dimly heard something glass crack but were too caught up in their fight. "I had a good reason for doing what I did!"

"Then _tell _me!" He stayed silent, a tick forming in his jaw. "Well, I'm _waiting_. Nothing, then? Does this mean you're admitting you had no reason, let alone a _good _one, for beating up poor, sweet Moto--"

The glass in Darien's hand cracked, cutting into his palm, as he finally snapped. "He wanted to keep me away from you and I sure as _hell _wasn't going to let that happen! I have failed you once before and I will be damned if I do again!"

Both froze at the words. Serena could swear all she could hear was the rushing of the blood in her ears and Darien's deep, angry breaths until he opened his palm and a bloody drinking glass slipped out, crashing onto the floor. Immediately golden sparks light up the room as they rushed to stop the bleeding, knit the skin back together. She swallowed thickly. "W-what did you say?"

His eyes snapped up to her, as golden as his healing sparks but burning brighter in the dark room. "I will not repeat myself. You are very well aware of what I said."

"Then--then," She tried again after taking a shaky breath. _'What's wrong with Darien? Why can't I __**ask **__why he has gold eyes?'_ "what was so urgent that you would beat him up just to see me? He--he probably said I was going to be fine, so then why not wait?"

He narrowed his terrifying golden eyes. "If you were in my position, you would not have simply taken his word. I know it. As it was, I trusted neither him nor his word and if he tries to keep me away again, I will not hesitate to throw the first punch. There is _nothing _poor or sweet about him."

She frowned. "So now you're suddenly not trusting Motoki, one of your _closest _friends, just because he didn't want you to see me?"

He shook his head, blue leaking back into gold. "This is no sudden thing, Serena, and now that I know you are possibly slowly dying, it makes it that more concrete. The man that Minako ran over that same afternoon, remember him?" She nodded, more than a little confused. "Mrs. Taiko is his _wife_ and I knowingly lied to her face because of Motoki."

"And just what did he do?"

"He protected Minako, you know the _friend _whose apartment who were held _hostage _for _days _in?" He scowled, both men inside hating the reminder. "He lied to Mrs. Taiko, saying he had no _clue _who ran into her husband. I lied to her to help him, thinking he had a _good _reason, and have been regretting it since the moment I walked into that conference room and saw her. Make no mistake, if she finds out what I did and I lose my chance at gaining Hotaru's guardianship, I blame Motoki. And Minako."

"You don't trust him… because he protected Minako!?" She asked incredulously, "News flash! He has no _clue _what happened between me and the Senshi! He protected her from one _little _thing, so what?"

"So you're saying I should have let _you _be arrested for assaulting Mr. Taiko instead?" He snapped back, "He remembered Minako's blonde hair. A _ton _of hair and there you were sleeping on a chair. I'm willing to bet that Motoki would have done everything _but _tell the truth if it'd come to that! This is no _sudden _thing, Serena! He lied to protect the woman that, not long before, he yelled at and practically ordered to leave the arcade! You were kidnapped and held hostage by that _same _woman. The Senshi think you're married to some Dark Kingdom general and are a traitor. Your powers were striped from you and now we learn that they were poisoning you in the first place! What does _any _of that tell you?"

"I don't know!" She burst out, "It's not as if I know every _single _thing there is to know about either Motoki or Minako. What, do you want me to follow them around like you did to me!?"

He reeled back, stepping away as if her words had physically hurt him. "So that's how it's going to be." He whispered quietly, disbelievingly, "You're going to throw the fact that I was worried about you in my face?"

She bit her lip. "No. You know," She met his piercing gaze, trying to show her sincerity, "I would _never _do that to you. But… I never asked you to worry about me. I never asked you to follow me."

"But you called me that first battle. Asked me to protect you." He retorted, gold overpowering blue once again, "You cannot take that back. I will not allow you to. I will protect you."

"What if I don't _want _you to protect me anymore? What if I don't need a shadow watching my every movement!? What if I don't need _you _anymore!?" She immediately regretted the words, watching as he flinched and took a step away from her again. "Darien… I didn't--"

Both men recoiled before they narrowed their eyes, together creating a fiery blue-gold color once more. "Just like that you expect me out of your life? I have news for you then. You _need _someone to protect you. One of the Senshi remembers the Silver Millennium and I'm betting everything that it is Minako. You need someone to look out for you because you _always _think the best of people and will never see what's in front of you until it's too late." He began walking to her but she immediately took a nervous step back, hitting the bed harshly. He froze. "You are afraid of me." Before she could say anything, Endymion disappeared in a whirlwind of pain and shock, leaving a shaky Darien behind. He looked up at Serena, a myriad of emotions on his face and in his completely-blue eyes that neither could understand. "I--I have to go." He whispered, running a shaky hand through his hair but he still continued to stare at her for a long, silent moment. She opened her mouth to say something --she wasn't afraid of him, that she need him, _anything_-- but then he was rushing past her and out the door, a mantra falling from his lips as he went. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

She gaped at where he'd stood for a few seconds before racing after him. She threw open the door, spotting his form in an empty elevator down the hall. "Darien, wait!" He made eye contact with her for the briefest of seconds, his eyes still filled with a million emotions, before the doors broke their contact and he disappeared. "No, wait! Don't go!"

She rushed out the door, barely seeing her perplexed mother wheeling the wheelchair toward her. "Serena, what was all that yelling about? I was just about ready to go in there and--"

She ignored the woman in her race toward the elevator. "Come on, come on!" She hissed as she frantically called the elevator back up to her, pressing the button as fast and hard as she could. When nothing happened, she ran over to the other elevator and did the same thing. "Come on, _please_! I can't let him leave like that!"

"Serena, what in the _world _is going on? What happened with Darien? He passed me, looking as if--" She continued to ignore her mother as she frantically went from one elevator to the other. But they were too _slow, _she was afraid that he'd already be gone by the time the doors even opened up for her. Briefly the thought of racing down the stairs crossed her mind but knew that would be even slower without her Senshi powers, especially with the stiffness in her muscles.

'_Ding!' _

Her head snapped over to the second elevator, relieved tears flooding her eyes as the doors finally slid open. She raced inside and began hitting the button for ground-level, barely giving her mother anytime to get both herself and the empty wheelchair inside. She danced from foot to foot all on the way down, well aware of the strange looks her mother was sending her but daring not to say a word. _'At least she isn't pushing me into the wheelchair.'_ She thought humorlessly, biting down on her bottom lip hard enough to draw blood. _'Why is this thing so slow!? Why did my room have to be so high up!?'_

A few agonizing moments later, another ding sounded as they landed. By that time her mother had stopped trying to ask what was wrong and silently followed her, her hands still pushing the wheelchair dutifully. She made a mental note to apologize but her guilt still didn't stop her from racing past her brother, father, and Dr. Vigil without a word to their confused shouts and statements.

Once she ran through the sliding doors, she immediately spotted a familiar red car headed toward her and the exit. She ran as close as she dared to the edge of the sidewalk. "Darien!" He drove past her, only a quick glance telling her he'd even heard or seen her, as the rain that had been threatening to fall all day pounded down on his windshield and her shivering body. It was the only thing that hid her tears as her family and Dr. Vigil came rushing toward her. _'Darien, please come back. I'm not afraid of you. I need you to keep watching out for me. Please.'_

* * *

Done: Feb. 20, 2009 1 p.m.

Posted: Feb 20, 2009 5:20-ish p.m.

1. _'Bí sláintiúil, bí láidir, bí saor. Anam. Fuascailt.' _Irish for "Be well, be strong, be free. Soul. Release". Truthfully I wanted a phrase in Welsh to go with her father and bro's names but couldn't find one. Bummer. Pretend, yes?

2. Michelle Valdete (Albanian male first-name meaning "sea wave" composed of the elements _vale _"wave" and _deti _"blue, sea". Can't find pronunciation, sorry.) is indeed Sailor Neptune. I'm using the English-dub name because it's convenient and, truthfully, she always seemed French to me and Michelle can be a French name. I mean, in _canon_, her violin is called _Marine __Cathédrale. _She's artistic, sophisticated, and both remind me of France. Zoisite is the same way, something just says "French!" about him and he _is _the commander of the DK's European division so it's not like it's completely random.

3. Zander _(ZAN der) _Variant of Xander, which is a short form of Alexander meaning "To defend men" specifically _alexo _"to help, defend" and _aner _"men". Wynne _(WIN) _Derived from the Old English given name _Wine_, meaning "friend". Ironically enough I completely made up both names, looking up neither beforehand. Zander because it started with a 'Z' and Wynne from my Howl's Moving Castle book… Lucky, I think. o.o The other general's names were the exact same way. Coincidently, accidentally appropriate. Lol.

4. Yes. Áine's mother was Cleopatra. As in Cleopatra VII, Queen of Egypt, who had the affairs with Marc Anthony and Julius Caesar being her reincarnation. Her affairs are what make her so renowned but I always considered her as having a brilliant military mind. She just had unconventional means like Faux-Serenity said. I think it's fitting for Áine's mother, any thoughts or comments?

See! I didn't kill Valkyrie off! Go me! (I still felt like a jerk so this is my redemption. T.T) I caused angst for Sere/Dare though. Honestly I figured they needed some by now. Need to discuss this DK husband of hers one day too… More Ami/Zoi scenes and I'm glad you liked last chapter's meeting. I'd been afraid that the crash would have been too overdone, considering that's usually how Sere/Dare meet, but I thought it was nice. As well as their chess game and talk this chapter until he scanned dark energy from her, that is. And Áine is finally beginning to redeem herself, yay!

_**No**_. Serena is not going to die and this includes dying and being revived by the Silver Crystal/Ginzuisho like in the series. But she is being poisoned and that needs to be taken care of now. I feel bad for doing that but I couldn't let go of the idea. It was a part of the original plan that practically doesn't exist anymore. Please R/R and ask questions, always appreciated.

_Tiger Celeste._


	26. Chapter 26

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

First things first: _Way _too much last chapter; too much for two chapters, really. I mean, only _**one **_of you commented on Cleopatra being Áine's mother. And here I was thinking that I'd get some interesting feedback because she _is _a real historical person and not mythological like most are so far. T___T And, in chapter 24, no one commented on Maerina/Zoi/ Beryl looking at the core of the planet for the _Golden Terran Kingdom._ I expected "They're looking for the _what _where!?" but nothing. Made me so sad. But I _**am **_loving your guys' reviews. That canceled out the sadness to make me all happy inside; just like how you seem to enjoy the latest developments (Dare/Sere angst, Zoi/Ami scenes, and Áine's redemption.) I think that's where I'm getting all this inspiration from…

Ah, review responses!

_**Chapter 24--**_

**SerentiyMoonGodness**: Serenity and Serena are the same, just like Endymion and Darien are. Serenity is… just a little slow on coming out. Was there something in particular that lead you to believe they were different people? I'd love to know. Thanks for the review. :D

**Butterfle: **Yup, I'm doing okay. Very inspired lately. As for why Ami reincarnated right but Rei didn't, can't I just say that Rei is special? xD Nah, there's a reason I just can't give away the mystery yet. Lol. And, yes, you are correct in saying that Minako knows who the fake Serenity is and she _is _the woman that was in the room with the crystals. She's also the one that was "Princess Serenity" in Darien's dreams. Nope, what I meant by Uranus and Neptune not making physical appearances is that I'll only mention what they're up to --like in chapter 25 when I mentioned Neptune was a French violinist name Michelle Valdete. I'll mention Uranus like that eventually, too. They're not going to contest to Hotaru's guardianship; I can confidently say they've ever meet her before or even knows she exists. Your other review is in the next section. Thanks for them, they're some of my favorite! :)

**Valkyrie Celes**: One day I'll get a handle on the typos. I swear. But, yay!, you didn't see Darien's seeking out Hotaru's guardianship! (I'd thought I was getting too predictable, lol) Hmm, I don't know if much will happen in that storyline though. It might be the most straightforward one in this whole thing but it's always a surprise what my fingers type up. Hehe, Velma. :) That actually might be a good sign if the name Albreda makes you think of her. Both girls _are _similar. In any case, I'm glad Zoi/Ami meeting was your favorite. I liked it too. And, oh, I have plans for when Serenity makes her first complete appearance. That was just a _taste _of Serenity. It is _soooo _awesome in my head but I don't know if I'll be able to pull it off like I want in words. --Crosses fingers-- I sure hope so! And I'm glad you like me bringing back people like the drunk. I like making sure every single thing I write plays a part, which is probably which this thing is a monstrosity. -.-;; As for Setsuna, she has all the _time _in the world to do anything. Hehe, get it? XD Your next review is in the next section. Thank you for all you awesome reviews, btw. They rock too. :)

**TabbyKit: **I agree with your thoughts about Ami fitting Albreda's meaning so well. That was what drew me to the name but, yeah, sound isn't …_right_. They way I saw it though, not everyone likes their name so it couldn't be _too _perfect. And, honestly, I couldn't find anything else to fit --I didn't want to fall into using Metis or Athena, etc. As for Nurse June and her realistic harshness, thank you for the kudos but I really don't think they're justified. I just tried not to dwell on its realistically because then I would have broken my un-perfect world and made her get hit by a car or something… I like making this fanfic "believable" --minus the whole magical power/ evil youma thing. No world is perfect and this story isn't any different. Hehe, poor Maerina got put on the backburner only to die. I probably could have used her for more shenanigans but she was annoying me with her non-appearing presence. And I figured she died for a noble cause, right? Kunz needed to protect his king. Hehe, you really annoy your friends? I'm honored. No sarcasm either.

**Sonar de Mercury:** You and I are both similar then. I drool over tech too. And, yes!, I have seen the Microsoft Surface. It's …wow. :O

**Silver Ame Tsukino:** Hehe, A "SWEET!" was actually the reaction I was hoping to get out of Darien seeking guardianship. I'm proud that seems to be the general reaction too. --sniff sniff-- You smell a plot twist between Jupiter and Faux-Serenity? Why can't I smell anything!? -sniff- Or wait, is that one? XD Yay for long reviews! They're my favorite kind, makes me talk a lot and reveal things I probably shouldn't. See above… lol.

_**Chapter 25--**_

**tryntee13: **You know, I really hope Serena can convey that to Darien too. They are just so _stubborn_. You described how she's feeling perfectly though. Lol, you might understand this story better than I do.

**chibiangel413: **Well, don't die on me now! Then you'll never find out who Faux-Serenity is. You will find out before the next story though, I promise. Just don't hate me if it's at the very end… I like Valkyrie being alive too. I just couldn't bring myself to kill her off. And, don't worry, Dare/Sere will fix their relationship. Somehow. Soul-mates mean something, after all. And the poison is just …something I had to thrown in. Makes things move along nicely and connect better in the end. I think. …It better!

**Valkyrie Celes:** You know, the changing of scenes and the pacing of the chapter wasn't actually planned. XD It was actually more of an experiment to see if it read easier that way or not. I thought it helped the flow, myself, but that could have been just how everything was written. Redemption is awesome; that's actually why Minako was more lighthearted last chapter. A weight kind of lifted off her shoulders once she realized she wasn't going to be a lackey anymore and could regain her control. I thought it was very profound of her. I'm so proud. T___T Lol. Hmm, are Kunz and her going to be a couple? I don't know… if only this was a few chapters down the road. Man, I hope you like the little revelation I throw in! Well, I'm glad you agree on Neptune being French! Actually you're the only one that commented on her French-ness so I'm _very _glad. I think I packed in too much during that chapter…. --sweat drop--

**Butterfle**: Hehe, sorry for making your head spin last chapter. First off, _you _were the only one that commented on Cleopatra being Áine's mother and I am very grateful for it. Don't worry about knowing too much about her, I only know the generalized and romanticized stuff myself (and my Queen Cleopatra will be a fictionalized Venusian anyways). As long as you liked the fact Venus isn't Aphrodite's daughter than I am pleased. I get tired of that too. As for where Valkyrie is… you know, on the hour drive to town I'd had an idea but I'm not so sure about it. It'd would mean introducing yet another character, though. But I liked the mental picture it created if only because it was so _Jupiter_. Anyways, (sorry. I ramble too. Lol) I hope she'll appear soon, I have no immediate plans --just knows she does-- but it should be soon. And Serena didn't think that Ami poisoned her; she was just angry at Darien for making the suggestion that a Senshi could have done it. Ami's the only Senshi still on Serena's side so of course she'd jump to conclusions and believe Darien blamed _all _the Senshi. She was indignant for her friend's sake, I guess you could say.…You always ask the _right _questions, don't you? That's all I can answer without ruining things for you. xD

Love all the feedback everyone. I think the story's starting to pick up speed again. Hopefully. Please R/R, like always.

On to the story! And enjoy!

* * *

"Morning, everyone."

Ikuko gasped in surprise as she spun around to face the voice, the food turner in her hand falling onto the ground. Shingo, whom was quickly eating his breakfast, choked on a bit of his bacon and began coughing. Kenji hurriedly set to patting his son on the back even while his eyes were trained on the owner of the voice, the paper he'd calmly been reading trailing in his coffee.

It was nothing short of a miracle to see Serena awake before seven a.m. on a normal day, let alone dressed, but there she was in the door of the hallway. At six-thirty. Dressed in something that required more effort than her school uniform. On _Saturday_, and more importantly, the _day _after being released from the hospital from a weeklong visit.

So what exactly could you call that? Was there anything _above _a miracle? Divine intervention, perhaps?

"Serena, dear," Ikuko began as she slowly picked up the food turner and placed it in the sink, "We---we didn't… expect you awake so _early_. …A-are you feeling well?" She asked tentatively as she opened the drawer for a new turner. _'Another breakfast to prepare, then.'_ She shook her head as she looked back at her daughter, a hand absently cracking an egg into the pan.

The blonde nodded, taking her brother's and father's disbelieving looks in stride as she walked to her place at the table and sat down. "Just couldn't sleep." She mumbled, "My mind was too busy."

Shingo, finally over his own shock, grinned. "Wow. Who'd a thought an _Odango _like you would _ever _have her mind too busy with anything. I thought the only thing up there was rocks."

Their parents cringed, expecting Serena to burst into tears or start yelling, but instead were shocked to see her eyes become glossy with tears. She only looked down at her placemat, however, not saying a word in response. Both had a strange feeling that the tears had nothing to do with the insult, either.

"Serena?" Kenji tried, "Are you sure you're all right? Your mother told me what happened upstairs with Darien last night. At least, what she'd seen."

"Nothing happened." The girl mumbled, refusing to make eye contact with anyone as she made absent circles on the table, "We just had a little fight. Happens to a million people all the time."

The brown-haired man made a little 'humph' sound as he picked his paper out of his quickly cooling coffee. "From what your mother told me, it didn't sound like such a 'little' fight. She said he practically ran out the room, you yelling after him. Then we all saw what happened downstairs."

She bit her lip. "I just… need to explain something. Apologize. We'll be fine; tomorrow I'll be yelling at him every time he calls me O-Odango like always." She felt her breath hitch at the nickname, wondering if she'd messed everything up so much that he wouldn't even bother calling her that anymore. She was afraid she had; he'd looked so _devastated _when he'd thought she'd been afraid of him. "C-cause I mean, he made it up so I doubt he'll give it up so easily…" She winced, wondering exactly who she was trying to convince.

The silent-Shingo left out a holler. "_That's _who came up with Odango? The guy that was visiting you all week? Man, now I wish I'd said more than hello to him! I always thought it was Rei that came up with it!"

Serena felt her shoulders stiffen as her mother's eyes light up in realization. "Where were your friends this week anyways, dear?" The woman asked curiously, "I only remember you telling me how Ami had visited but not the others."

She swallowed, realizing she'd felt better hiding in her room and wallowing in her misery than she did now facing this unexpected interrogation. "They're probably just… busy with other things, I guess. No big deal."

Ikuko rose an eyebrow, as did her husband. "I don't know about you, pumpkin," Kenji began thoughtfully, "but I'd be real upset if my friends didn't visit me in the hospital. I mean, not even once?"

The girl shrugged wordlessly, watching as her mother placed her breakfast in front of her. The idea of another real meal, besides getting away from her moon-covered comforter and its reminder of everything she _wasn't _anymore, was what had promoted her to come down but now she didn't feel hungry in the least. She picked up her fork anyways, knowing her parents would be suspicious otherwise, and poked at an egg absently.

Shingo watched the way his parents were staring at his sister before rolling his eyes. She was weird all the time, what made today different? He quickly shoveled the last few bites of his toast into his mouth before standing up with his plate and placing it in the sink. "Thanks for breakfast, mom. Now I gotta go met the others at the field or I'll be late."

The woman startled out of her thoughts, her face breaking into a slight smile. "Okay, dear. Have fun at your practice." She watched as he brushed of a few crumbs from his bright yellow uniform. "Be sure to grab a coat on the way out. It's getting colder." She added as he grabbed his backpack and soccer ball from where he'd placed them under his chair.

The boy rushed out, waving a careless hand "I will! Bye, everyone! See you in a few hours!"

"Call me at the office if you need a ride home!" Kenji called after him, standing up and dumping his cold coffee into the sink. He kissed his wife on the cheek. "All right. I guess that's my cue to leave too." He groaned as he picked up his briefcase and pulled his suit jacket off the back of his chair.

Ikuko shook her head. "I can't believe they're making you go to the office on the weekend. They barely even let you have time to visit Serena this week."

He frowned, sighing. "I know. The boss is just so obsessed with finding out what happened to Sailor Moon and why she didn't appear at the battle when Sailor Jupiter died. I guess I should be lucky he's only making me come in for half the day, though. Some of the others are being forced to practically scour the city…"

As they walked out of the kitchen and headed toward the door, neither saw Serena freeze. _'They… _everyone _still thinks I'm to blame, don't they? Because I'm too much of a coward to stand up to the others and tell them that I'd never betray them. Or that I'm not married to some Dark Kingdom general.'_ She winced as her eyes began to sting with more tears._ 'No, no. One thing at a time. I _have _to fix what happened between me and Darien first. I __**promise **__I will! Then I can get an update from Ami and worry about the Senshi then.'_

"Are you _positive _you feel okay, Serena?" Ikuko asked, leaning against the doorway as she returned. The girl's fork was frozen halfway to her mouth but she didn't even seem to notice. "I know you want to be brave, not believing what Doctor Rupert said about this thing in your bloodstream, but if you're too tired--"

Serena shook her head rapidly. "No. I'm fine. I swear. I'm just… thinking is all." She sighed, trying to muster up a grin. "I'm just not so used to it, like Shingo said. No brains, remember?"

"You know your brother is just teasing. You are very smart." Ikuko sighed herself, rubbing her forehead as she got a good look at her daughter's demeanor: face pulled down into a frown, dark bags under her eyes, dull blue eyes, even her pigtails seemed to be drooping. "I don't mean to pry, Serena, but I'm concerned about you. I know we decided to let you continue school, dealing with your… condition… and whatever happens when it does but I'm starting to believe it was the wrong choice. Especially if Darien or any of your others friends continue to upset you like this."

The blonde winced. "They're not upsetting me. It's all my fault. Everything." She shook her head again, looking down at her plate and putting her fork down. "I think I'm going to go back up to my room to rest. C-could you give me a ride somewhere later?"

Ikuko folded her arms with a frown. "I know you miss your friends, dear, but I don't think it's a good idea to go running all over town with them today. I can't imagine letting you go anywhere, really."

"No. I--I _need _to go back to the hospital." Serena looked up, her eyes pleading but determined more than anything. "I promise. Just the hospital and I'll come back and do whatever you want. Stay in my bed or--or clean my room. I guess I could just take the train or something instead if you can't though…"

The woman's eyes zoned in on her daughter's clothing curiously. "And _why _do you need to go there? I doubt you're visiting your little friend if you're dressed like that."

'_So much for not meaning to pry.' _The blonde thought with a sigh. "I need to take care of something. Something very important to me." She looked down at herself. "And this was the only thing I had that seemed appropriate enough. It's not like I have a suit lying around anywhere…"

The housewife pursed her lips. "Fine. Keep your secrets. I'll take you." She sighed, walking over to her daughter and brushing the bangs out of her face. "I mean well, Serena. I really do. Why don't you take a nap, okay? Maybe you'll feel better then."

"Maybe." She muttered, not believing it but trying to appease her mother, "Can you come get me around ten? I have to be there by eleven-thirty. I can't be late for this. Not matter what."

"Okay, dear." Ikuko watched her eldest walked away, the bounce completely missing from her step as she went. She sighed as she looked down at where the girl had vacated: her plate was still almost completely untouched. _'What's happening to you, Serena? Why does it seem like I'm only getting half the story?'_

* * *

"Well, here it is. Home sweet home." For the first time that morning, Darien managed to muster up a hint of a smile as he closed the door behind Ms. Une. She was alone this time around, though the notepad she held and the digital camera he could see hanging off her wrist assured him she would be informing the others of exactly what she saw.

She looked around in obvious interest, taking in the furniture and layout of the living room and the adjacent kitchen to the left of it. "This neighborhood, Mr. Shields," She begun as she spun around to face him, "is an excellent area. I looked up some basic statistics last night and there is a surprisingly low crime rate."

He nodded. "Yes. I made sure to do my own thorough search before I moved into the area. I believed, and still do, the price of the lease was justified by what I learned. Safe, quiet, in a prime location. I could not have asked for a better home in Tokyo."

She smiled, looking down at her notepad. "Now, yesterday you said that this apartment has two bedrooms?" He nodded. "Could you please show me the room where Hotaru would possibly stay in?"

"Sure. Right this way." He quickly led her in the opposite direction of the kitchen, down a small hall. There was a door directly at the end of the hall and when Darien stopped there, she looked to her right curiously to see three other doors --one no doubt leading to a closest by its size. She jotted down a few notes as he opened the door in front of him with a small smile, allowing her to enter before him. "Look around at your discretion." He offered as he moved to stand beside the door and out of the way.

She nodded gratefully, already taking everything in. It was a relatively plain room with white walls and a beige carpet; neither too big nor too small in its size. A twin-sized bed with a green cover and two white pillows was almost directly across from the door, a plain dark oak headboard behind it. A matching dark oak bedside chest with three drawers was to the right of it and a small gold lamp with a white shade was on top. There was a window with sheer forest-green curtains a little further down from the bed; it did look in the direction of the park, she noted absently. A plain unfinished desk was against the middle of the right-hand wall, empty except for a white vase of yellow daises. A rolling chair was in front of it, and when she looked to the right, she saw a reading chair with a high back in the corner. There were shelves against the wall by that chair but all four were empty save for the middle one that had a blue vase of roses on it. A glossed black armoire was to the right of the door and, as she opened it curiously, it contained a few shelves and the bottom half had three drawers. She closed the armoire and walked over to the closet on the left wall. It was small with white folding doors and was bare except for a handful of hangers, shelving, and other organizational cubbies. She left the door open as it was and spun around for a final appraising look. The room was nice, but impersonal, so she looked to Darien. "I'm assuming this is a guest room?"

He pushed himself up from the wall and dropped his crossed arms with a slight smile. "You are correct, Ms. Une. Not many people have stayed in here however." He looked around the room, almost as if he was reminding himself of how it looked. "Six months ago my friend Motoki stayed here for about a week when his apartment was being repaired. When I watch my neighbor's daughter, she occasionally takes a nap in here and has stayed overnight once when her father had to rush out of town. That's it though, so no one would be put in an inconvenience if Hotaru was to stay here herself."

The social worker was nodding as she listened. She took a moment to write down a few more things on her notepad before looking up. "Would you mind if I took some pictures, Mr. Shields?"

He shook his head lightly. "Not at all. Take however many you need in any room you'd like."

She flashed him a smile before pulling the black camera off her wrist. Once she gathered what she believed was enough for the others, she returned it to its previous place. "You understand that you would need to child-proof the room, correct? Nothing major. Perhaps a few bumpers on the sharp edges of the desk and beside chest."

"Correct. When --_if_--," He amended hastily as she rose an eyebrow, "I was granted guardianship, I also planned to let Hotaru decorate the room as she wanted once she was comfortable. I know it isn't very child-friendly right now."

"True. It _is _nice, just not for a small child." She wrote something down quickly on the notepad before glancing around the room one more time and looking back at the young man. "Well, I believe we are done with this room."

"Am I allowed to ask if it has passed your judgment?" He couldn't help but ask curiously.

"With some modification it would make a proper room for any child." Came the calm, stoic response as she walked through the door. She flashed him a wink on the way out, though, so he knew he was one step closer to his goal. He smiled, the first genuine one since last night. _'Almost there, Hotaru. Just a little longer now.'_

* * *

Ikuko gave the occupant of the passenger seat a side-long glance before turning her attention back to the road. "Don't worry, we'll make it in time." Serena nodded but that still didn't stop her eyes from darting to the dashboard clock every few moments. Ikuko fought back a frown as she stopped the car at a stoplight.

It wasn't the time that was bothering her, however; rather the fact that when she'd gone into Serena's room around ten just as she'd been asked, it had taken almost twenty minutes to wake the girl. At first she'd thought it was a good sign --a sign of a normal, non-somber Serena-- but in the end she'd been very wrong.

Fifteen minutes into her attempts to awaken the girl, who'd made neither a grumble nor a mumble like she normally would have, she'd became frantic. It was a well-known fact that Serena was a deep sleeper but not _that _deep of one. She'd been on the verge of calling Kenji and an ambulance, afraid that Dr. Rupert's theory was coming true before her very eyes when she'd noticed the labored breaths the girl was taking. But, before she could even leave the room, Serena had flown into a sitting position with a scream bursting from her throat. It had only taken a few seconds for her to completely wake up, her breathing almost returning to normal, but she'd still continued to gasp and cry as she hugged her stomach for minutes afterwards.

"Have you remembered anything from your nightmare, Serena?" She asked hesitantly, glancing at her daughter for the briefest of seconds to see her stiffen.

The blonde forced herself to relax even as she hunkered down and turned her face to the window so she wouldn't have to meet her mother's eyes. "Nope. Not a thing."

Ikuko pursed her lips but said nothing else. A nightmare. Serena had claimed it was a _nightmare_. One of those kinds were it seems to pull you in, making you unable to wake up. She believed that; what she didn't believe was that she couldn't recall what it was about. When they'd both calmed down --Serena from the nightmare and herself from the scare the girl had given her-- she'd seen the haunted look in the girl's eyes. She remembered _exactly _what her dream was about and it had shaken her to the core of her very being. She… just didn't want to tell anyone else what she'd dreamt.

"It--it wasn't…" Serena cleared her throat nervously, "I c-can't remember anything in particular, really. Just flashes of things here and there."

The housewife blinked, gazing at her daughter in surprise, before snapping her eyes back as she heard someone honking their car horn irritably. She smiled slightly as she left the four-way stop she'd just come across. "If you told me what they were," she offered calmly, "maybe I could help you make some sense out of them."

"Okay," The blonde practically breathed out the word but her nod was firm, "I--I remember seeing a sword. I--I don't know what it was doing--" She winced, her eyes watering slightly. _'Except stabbing someone who looked a lot like Darien'_ "--b-but I was just so scared and worried. And I was crying so much then--then," She touched her chest. "there was this pain in my heart. Like-- like the sword had…" She trailed off, biting her lip. "Then I saw all these …monsters. Like the S-Senshi fight, you know? And--and I saw this big like… _column _of white light and it kept getting bigger and _closer_. To both me and the monsters. I--I was scared but I wasn't _afraid _of it. It--it was like I knew what it meant but still didn't…" She shook her head, frustrated at her own confusion. "But the weirdest thing is that it felt like I was watching the light through someone _else's _eyes. Then--then there was a whole bunch of stuff after that. Like flashes of red and--and like a purple color or something but it was all jumbled so I'm not sure." She bit her lip again, looking at her mother hesitantly. "W-what do you think?"

Ikuko took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. "I… I'm not sure what to say. I just--" She shook her head lightly. "--don't know. It could mean so many things or it could have simply been a dream. Do you remember anything else? Like someone you recognized?"

"No." Serena shook her head quickly and probably more frantically than she should have but she wasn't going to tell the truth. _'She doesn't need to know that the dream started with what Rei did that night and her red eyes. Or-or that it was Darien being stabbed by a sword. Nope. Doesn't need to know any of that._'

Ikuko, not seeing her daughter's look, frowned thoughtfully. "Well, if you had said you'd seen someone you recognized, I would have suggested that it was your fear that something will happen to that person. Dreams are known to express your innermost fears, so they say at least. If you had seen someone in your dream, like one of your friends, it could have simply been you feared for them and your mind came up with a situation."

Serena looked at her mother in fascination. "So," She licked her dry lips. "you're saying that if I'd seen Darien or someone, it could be that I fear for him on some level and my mind pretty much came up with some scenario for my fear to be justified?"

The older woman shrugged. "Perhaps. I'm nowhere near an expert but I've watched someone explain dreams on one of those afternoon talk shows before. That's what I understood from their explanations."

The blonde nodded thoughtfully, leaning back in her seat to chew over the information. _'Could that be why I dreamed that? But I don't fear for Darien._' She winced a bit, _'Well, okay. I __**am **__worried that the Senshi will find out he's Tuxedo Mask and decided to hold him hostage like they did me. When I was thinking of what they'd do to him a few days ago, I _did _think of a him being stabbed by a sword over and over. Maybe that was it. It _was _just some dream and nothing more.'_

* * *

Halfway around the world, a woman's brow crinkled as if in irritation. The brainwaves on one of the monitors surrounding her have a jump but, floors above and around, not a single soul was the wiser. Indeed, most had yet to awake to begin carrying out their duties and responsibilities in the new day.

* * *

"Well, I believe that concludes the tour and walkthrough aspect of this evaluation." Ms. Une stated as she stopped in the middle of the living room, pulling a case from her purse and sliding the camera inside. "Thank you, again, for allowing me to invade your home like this."

"I expected it so do not worry yourself, Ms. Une." Darien replied as he stood in front of the woman, "I did not feel invaded in the least."

She quirked a smile. "Usually I do not hear that from people. Especially when I ask to see such places like a bathroom or their own personal bedrooms. But I am a firm believer that your home shows your innermost self. How you decorate it. How you live in it. Everything tells me who you are."

"And what has my home told you about me?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

She looked around, taking in everything again. "That you are very tidy." She giggled, suddenly sounding much younger. "I apologize but could not help myself. Everything is spotless, yet I have a feeling you barely lifted a finger to clean between yesterday and today."

'_Because I was too busy frightening Serena and hating myself.'_ He thought bitterly, shaking his head. "I believe you have some questions for me now?"

She nodded, not seeing his briefly pained expression, and cleared her throat to regain her professionalism. "Certainly." She tapped her pen against her notepad as she read it. "Could you please tell me about the amenities inside the complex. Yesterday you only listed some of the surrounding ones." He opened his mouth to respond but was cut off by the buzzing of the doorbell. He flashed the woman an apologetic look which she responded to with a smile. "Go right ahead, Mr. Shields."

"It'll just take a minute." He assured with a nod of thanks as he went to the door. When he pulled it open, he was surprised to see a familiar, but haggard-looking, person. "Neil? Is something wrong?"

The neighbor gave a small nod but didn't show a hint of the smile he usually had on his face. "Hello, Darien. I was actually hoping to ask you something." His brow furrowed as he caught sight of the woman behind the younger man. "But now I think I might be interrupting something. Should I come back later?"

The darker-haired man shot a quick look over his shoulder. "Would you mind holding on a second, Neil?" He received a solemn nod in reply so, leaving the door open, he went back to the social worker that stood facing the balcony. "Ms. Une? My neighbor needs to speak with me for a few minutes and I was wondering if you'd mind?"

"No, not in the least. I'll wait here in the living room and take a closer look around. If you don't mind that is. I won't disturb anything, of course." She added as she snapped her gaze back to see Darien nodding.

"Go right ahead. I'll be back momentarily." He quickly went over to the quiet neighbor, leading him out into the hall for privacy. Neil immediately sagged against the wall between their apartments once the door was closed, making Darien frown as he stood in front of the man and folded his arms across his chest. "What's wrong? Where's Rose?"

Nephrite ran a hand through his short hair tiredly. "She's still sleeping so I snuck out. I didn't have the heart to wake her just to walk next door." He stopped to sigh. "Anyways, I was wondering if you would be willing to watch her overnight again? I know this is short notice and all but every time I managed to come over to ask you, you weren't here. I'd really appreciate it if you could. A few of my friends are in town on--" He seemed to struggle for the right word, "--_business_ and I need to speak with them about my wife."

Darien's frown deepened in concern as the other man flinched at the last word. "Are you doing okay? You don't seem like your usual self."

"I'll be all right with time. I hope." Nephrite tried to smile but couldn't so he just sighed again. "Would you mind watching her? I don't want to bring her since the conversation _is _about her mother. Partially, at least."

Darien's brow furrowed even as he nodded. "It'd be no problem. When should I expect you two over?"

"I don't know. Four maybe? It's going to be a _long _conversation and I know I'll end up crashing there. Well, that or we'll be up all night. Would that be okay though?" He asked sheepishly, "I could drop her off later if you want."

"No, that's fine. I may be a little late though." At Neil's curious look, the younger man sighed. "I'm going to visit a friend in the hospital a little later to see how she's doing today. I doubt it's much different from yesterday but her roommate left and I want to make sure she's handling the adjustment. I should see if Mrs. Taiko contacted Mr. Nihou about a meeting while I'm there too since Ms. Une doesn't know…"

"Meeting?"

It was Darien's turn to run a hand through his hair. "That's right. I was going to ask you--" He focused in on the dark circles under his neighbor's sad eyes before shaking his head. "--but now I don't really think I should. You seem to have enough going on in your life without me asking for a favor."

"No, no." Nephrite finally formed a genuine smile, albeit a small one. "I consider you my friend after all. Ask away and I'll do what I can to help."

Darien's forehead creased. "I'm not quite sure it will be that easy. You know the friend I want to visit in the hospital? She's actually a little girl named Hotaru whose mother is in a coma. No other family of hers can be found and no one is willing to take her in as a foster child because she's mute. The government plans to send her to an orphanage but I am trying to gain guardianship of her to prevent that."

The mahogany-haired man blinked in confusion. "How can I help with that?"

"The woman that you saw, Ms. Une, is just one of the four people who are reviewing me. She is evaluating my apartment to make sure it is suitable for a child while simultaneously reviewing my character by how it looks." Darien ran a nervous hand through his hair again. "During my interview, they asked for three references. One of them was for someone whose child I've watched and Rose is sort of the only one I have watched, especially for extended amounts of time, so--"

"Then it would be my pleasure to help." Nephrite interrupted, smiling widely at his king's surprised look. "But, may I ask why you are doing this?"

"Because it isn't fair for a child to be sent to an orphanage just because people find them difficult." Darien replied, his eyes dark with an unnamed emotion, "I'm perfectly willing and capable of taking care of Hotaru when no one else is."

"So what would I have to do?" _'He was sent to an orphanage.' _Nephrite thought somberly, _'I knew his parents had died if he had been receiving an inheritance for years, like Commander said, but I would never have expected this.'_ Suddenly, making sure that Darien could gain this girl's guardianship became a top-priority in his life. Right after finding out what the hell happened to Val and why his fellow generals didn't seem to be doing anything about, well, _anything_.

"From what I understand they would just want to hold a meeting with you." Darien stated, breaking the general out of his thoughts, "Ask questions about how I act around and with Rose. To see if I can care for children and am attentive."

Forgetting himself, Nephrite snorted in amusement. "Please. You're the most attentive person I know. That one time--" When he saw the odd expression he was receiving, his eyes widened. "I-- I mean you're always attentive to what Rose needs. She gives me a play-by-play of every time she stays with you, you know. She adores you."

Darien eyed the man for another moment before nodding. "Right. So would you be willing to do this? It's not as if I expect you to, of course. It's not an obligation for watching Rose or anything. I'll watch her no matter-- "

Nephrite chuckled, feeling better than he had when he'd first walked out of his apartment. "Darien, stop. I don't consider this as an obligation of any sort, watching Rose or otherwise. I consider it as helping a friend whom helped me adjust to Japan without hesitance or even being asked."

"Thank you." He sighed in relief. "Thank you so much. Honestly, I had no one else to ask."

"Sure but, uh…" He gestured to the blue-eyed man's door, "shouldn't you be getting back to that woman? It's been more than just a few minutes." Darien groaned at the reminder but before he could say anything, his neighbor spoke again. "Hey, do you think she'd mind if I set up a meeting now?"

"I really don't see why not." He mused, "I was told to notify someone as soon as the references agreed."

"Then that sounds to me like there's no better opportunity than now. And you're in luck because my schedule has become clear lately. I won't have to leave town, at least, anymore." Nephrite immediately winced and shook his head. _'Val…'_ He followed his friend as he opened his apartment door, revealing Ms. Une looking at the entertainment system curiously.

"Hmm… Nice television." Both men chuckled at the soft comment, causing the woman to gasp audibly and spin around, her face flushed a deep red. "I--I apologize, Mr. Shields. I--I should not have said such a thing."

"It's alright, Ms. Une." Darien chuckled, looking at his neighbor out of the corner of his eyes. "I actually remember Neil here saying something similar when he walked in the first time."

"It's true." Nephrite commented with a careless shrug, "You can tell it's not watched often which is real shame. Flat screen, at least 40 inches, nice cable setup. I wish I'd had one when I was eighteen."

"I wish I'd had an _apartment _like this when I was eighteen. Two bedrooms, a _full _kitchen, and have you seen the bathtub?" Ms. Une giggled, causing Neil to chuckle louder while Darien shook his head in mirth.

"I agree. I was stuck in a one-room box with horrible neighbors and no hot water on Tuesdays. Allow me to introduce myself," Nephrite stated with a charming smile. "Neil Davis at your service."

"Natsumi Une." The social worker giggled back, "I'm assuming you are the neighbor Mr. Shields's just spoke with?"

"That is correct, ma'am." He nodded, charming smile still in place. "But, actually, I am here to met you. I'm assuming Darien has mentioned his babysitter services for me and my daughter Rose?"

"You are _that _neighbor." Ms. Une said with an understanding nod, "Which no doubt means you are a reference as well." She glanced at Darien with an amused tilt of her lips. "You surely are determined, Mr. Shields. It's only been one day and I already know all of your references."

He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Well, I was told to contact someone as soon as the reference agreed. Neil did and you were already here at the apartment… We thought, why waste time?"

"Well, Mr. Davis," Ms. Une began as she raised her eyebrows at the mahogany-haired man, "Do you have a day in mind? I'm sure Mr. Shields told you that we would like to set up a meeting to question what you know about him and his care of children."

"Yes. I was informed and, since my friend here is so determined, would you mind if we did it this afternoon perhaps? I am free until about four o' clock this afternoon." The general stated without preamble.

She blinked, a little taken back his eagerness. "Well, the only extra timeframe I am positive myself and my colleagues coincide in today is the time we had set aside for myself to inform them of this evaluation." She shook her head lightly. "Though, I suppose it would not take much convincing to move that to a later time and interview you instead. Since it is an urgent matter…"

"It would not put anyone at an inconvenience?" He asked hesitantly, "I would completely understand if you wanted to schedule for another day. I simply suggested this afternoon because today is the only day I am positive of my schedule."

"I do not believe anyone will be inconvenienced." She assured him as her hand slipped into her purse and pulled out a planner, "We are all determined to get Hotaru situated as soon as possible. May I have your phone number? I will contact you after I have spoken with the others and tell you what has been decided."

Nephrite nodded and quickly rattled off the number which Ms. Une wrote in the planner before quickly jotting down something else and returning it to her purse. "Would you mind if I brought my daughter with me?" He questioned abruptly, "Darien has already agreed to watch her tonight and I do not want to burden him anymore than necessary."

"I could--" The dark-haired man began from where he had silently watched the duo's exchange on the sidelines.

"No, no." Ms. Une shook her head quickly. "As a matter of fact, the others will probably insist on bringing her. We like asking the child themselves in these situations."

Nephrite sent his king a smile. "Thank you for the offer, Darien, but I don't want to take any more of your time for your friend away. You already agreed to take care of Rose for the night and that's more than--"

_Bam!_

Ms. Une gasped and clutched her heart in fright as the apartment door swung open, hitting the wall with a loud bang. Nephrite and Darien absently went into defensive positions before straightening out with amused smiles as they saw the small child sprawled out on the ground. Ms. Une frowned in confusion, looking toward the men for explanation when they didn't do anything but shake their heads knowingly. "Who..?"

"That would be my daughter." Nephrite explained as he walked over to the stunned child still lying down on her stomach. He crouched down to shake her shoulder softly. "Rose, sweetie? Are you okay?"

She looked up with a dazed expression. "Dada?"

"Yup." He chuckled once he saw she was perfectly fine, if just stunned that the door had opened so abruptly. _'Guess it hadn't closed all the way.' _"Let me guess. You were sleep-toddling?"

"Daddy go." The brown-haired child offered in explanation as Nephrite picked her up and stood. Once she was securely placed on his hip, she shook her head softly. "Daddy go. Rose go."

"So that means you can scare us half to death?" He asked incredulously as he straightened out her Hello Kitty nightgown, "What about all the times you leave when I'm _not _gone? What makes you think you can leave then?" She grinned in answer, the look similar to the charming one he had given Ms. Une. He rolled his eyes in disbelief. _'Ah. She's going to be a people-person just like me. Guess I know who'll be the Academy's PR when I retire.'_

"I think she just enjoys watching you worry, Neil." Darien commented with a chuckle.

Rose's green eyes light when she heard the man's voice and quickly searched the room for him. He stood a few feet away, standing next to the silently observing Mrs. Une. "Dare-Dare!" She cried out happily as she held out her arms to him. The said man chuckled again as he walked over to take her from Neil.

He, in turn, frowned and reached out to poke his daughter's stomach as Darien placed her on his own hip. "Hey. Did you forget just who your father is, young lady?" He teased.

Rose giggled as she hugged Darien around the neck, smiling widely at her pouting father. "No! _Wuv _Dada!"

Darien gave the man a teasing grin. "She knows who her father is, Neil, but she also knows who she likes better, right Rosie-Posie?"

"Mama!" The child cheered, forcing Ms. Une to burst into laughter even as Nephrite's smile wilted and Darien's eyes narrowed in on the expression. _'Where exactly __**is **__Rose's mother? I've never seen her at their apartment and Rose is the only one that really mentions her. Even then, it's only in small things.'_

"She sure is a little ray of sunshine, isn't she?" The social worker remarked with a entertained grin, "She didn't even cry when she fell. Simply amazing."

The praise toward his daughter, if nothing else, was what shook Nephrite out of his brooding thoughts. "Actually, I think she was just too shocked to cry this time. Rose's usually a trooper though. Takes after my wife in that; Val's as tough as they come but still manages to have a soft heart underneath it all."

'_He doesn't sound like a widower but then, where is this Val?' _Darien frowned in concern when the sadness returned to his neighbor's eyes. When Rose looked up at him, though, he fought to form a small smile for her benefit. "Dare-Dare! Mama 'eam!"

His brow crinkled in confusion. "'eam?' Oh! A _dream_. Your mom was in your dream? Is that why you came over here to find your dad?"

She nodded vigorously. "Yup! Mama 'ost!" The little girl didn't notice the shocked look on Darien's face as she looked to her dad as he began talking to Ms. Une. _'Lost? Is Neil's wife really missing or is she just talking about a dream?'_

"Oh, she's only one and a--" As his daughter's words finally penetrated his thoughts, Nephrite broke off in mid-sentence to turn to her. His eyebrows rose incredulously. "Rose? What do you mean your mommy's lost?"

"An' 'ad!" She declared with a frown.

"Rose." The hazel-eyed man whispered, his eyes widening. He shook his head and as he did so, spotted the slightly-bloody patch on his daughter's knee, no doubt from her fall. "I think we should take care of that, sweetie." He said suddenly as he pointed to injury, "We don't want to leave an owie like that, right?"

The girl tried to look down but couldn't see over the large forearm that was wrapped around her waist to keep her in place. "No." She looked up at her father pleadingly. "Dare-Dare!"

"Ah, come on. We have those pretty star band aids you like at home." He reminded her, an almost desperate gleam in his eyes. _'Come on, sweetie. I need to ask you about this dream but I can't exactly do it here. I need to know what you mean by Mama's lost and sad. Or was that mad?'_

"_No! _Dare-Dare!"

He sighed and gave a rueful smile as the said man laughed at the child's insistence. "Well, guess what? You get to spend the _whole _night here with Darien. You'll see him again in a few hours, I promise."

Rose laughed happily, the sudden tears in her eyes disappearing as quickly as they'd appeared. She eagerly held out her arms to her father. "'ars!"

Ms. Une giggled. "I can certainly see who runs the pants in that family. Darien _and _stars, all in one day."

"Yeah. I can't wait until she's a teenager." Nephrite gave a wry smile as he hoisted Rose out of his friend's arms. "She's going to be quite the hellion."

"Another thing she takes after her mother in?"

His eyes softened drastically as he looked down at the girl on his hip. He tapped her nose affectionately and she giggled in reply. "Don't I know it." He offered the social worker a mischievous smile. "Of course, Val isn't the only one to blame in that area. I was always a troublemaker too." As Ms. Une laughed knowingly, he turned back to Darien. "I'll see you soon then. Thank you for watching Rose when I visit my friends. I'm afraid we wouldn't get any talking done if she was there. Those two clowns haven't seen her since she was a baby so…"

"So she'd be spoiled with attention the whole night instead." The dark-haired man finished, shaking his head in amusement, "Then it's a good thing she's going to spend time with me." He reached out and ruffled the girl's hair wildly, making her bed-head worse than it already was. "See you later on, okay Rosie-Posie?"

"O'ay!"

Nephrite turned back to the social worker as his daughter said her good-byes. "It was a pleasure to meet you Ms. Une. Please be sure to call me about the meeting as soon as you hear from the others."

The woman's eyes softened as she watched Darien bend down to let Rose hug him again. "Don't worry, I will. I do wish I had a camcorder with me to capture this unexpected observation for the others." She shook her head and flashed him a smile. "Anyways, it was a pleasure to met you, Mr. Davis. I hope to see you again this afternoon."

He nodded, looking down. "Hey, Darien? Mind letting go of my daughter?"

Darien smirked as Rose continued to squeeze him around the neck. "You're just jealous, Neil." Even with his teasing, he looked at Rose inquisitively. "Mind letting go, Rosie-Posie? Don't worry, I'll see you tonight and we'll have lot's of fun, okay? Just bring some of your things over like last time." The child nodded and let go, so he sent her a fond smile before straightening and looking up at her father. "See you later too, Neil. Thank you, again, for agreeing to have a meeting. You have no idea how much this means to me."

"I told you." The man said, a hint of old remembrance in his voice, "That's what friends are for. Anyways, I better go. Good day to both of you." He nodded toward Ms. Une who waved back cheerily before heading toward the door, Rose calling out "Bye-bye!" until the door closed behind them.

Darien shook his head in amusement and turned to the social worker. "Would you like to finish your questions now, Ms. Une?"

She glanced down at her watch before sending him an apologetic smile. "I'm afraid not, Mr. Shields. If I don't leave now, I will be late for Miss Tsukino's appointment."

"She…" He shook his head incredulously, "She's doing the interview still?"

The woman nodded, a slight crease in her bow. "Yes, of course. I have not been informed of anything different. The appointment is at eleven-thirty, just before lunch."

Darien nodded absently, his mind running a mile a minute about what the implications of that could mean. _'No. She's probably just doing it for Hotaru.' _"Would you like to finish up later, then?"

"I don't believe that will be necessary. I can look up almost everything I was going to ask. They were simply about the amenities and surrounding area. If there is anything I cannot research, I will call you later." She paused, finally placing her pen and notepad in her purse, before giving him a smile. "Thank you for being so accommodating, Mr. Shields."

He returned the smile as he walked her to the door. "It was no problem. I should be the one thanking you for the chance."

* * *

Serena smoothed down her black dress pants nervously. They were her favorite pair with their little silver pinstripes and matched the pink blouse she was wearing perfectly. They weren't exactly her first choice for a meeting this somber in nature but, like she'd told her mother, they were the most appropriate things she had to wear. But, she swore if she _didn't _help Darien get guardianship, she _was _getting a suit to have on hand. She sighed slightly, straightening her faux-top blouse and adjusting the tie on the side. _'I bet a suit would have made me feel more confident.'_ At the reminder of confidence, her fingers stilled in her fidgeting. _'Calm down, Serena. Breathe in, breathe out. There's no need to be so nervous. You only have to prove that Darien is a wonderful person who can take care of Hotaru. If you don't she'll just be sent to some awful orphanage-- stop, stop. That didn't help anything.'_

"Miss Tsukino?"

Her head snapped up, taking in the three people staring at her. When she'd arrived, her mind still focused on her dream, she'd been told that they were waiting for Ms. Une who was late in returning from Darien's apartment evaluation. And, fifteen minutes later, they were still waiting and every single one of her thoughts about dreams had fled in light of her nerves. Of course it didn't help that every time she looked at Mrs. Taiko she was reminded of her and Darien's fight last night and everything he'd said about the woman _and _Minako and Motoki. Then, on top of that, there was Dr. Vigil whom seemed to be examining her health every few seconds, making her on edge even more. The only person she wasn't bothered by was Dr. Hiroshi because he was silently reading the paperwork in front of him. "I am fine, Mrs. Taiko. Simply thinking."

The woman still frowned, sharing a look with Dr. Vigil who sat to her left. He spoke hesitantly. "Are you feeling well, Serena? If you're not, I'm sure we'd all understand if you needed to reschedule. You were just released from the hospital yesterday and with this belief Doctor Rupert has--"

She almost glared. _'I thought he was like Ami's mom and didn't believe it either! Does everyone think I'm made of glass and will collapse without a moment's notice? How many times have I been asked if I'm alright today!?' _"No, no. I am just… nervous." She admitted out loud once she got her thoughts under control. It wasn't right to take her emotions out on them; it wasn't their fault she was so nervous about the prospect of failing this meeting. Or that she was worried about Darien and the fact he probably hated her.

"Don't worry, Miss Tsukino." Dr. Hiroshi stated with a slight smile as he glanced up briefly, "We are not here to judge you."

'_No. You're just here to judge Darien.'_ She frowned internally, knowing how true her thoughts were. "I know. I just cannot help but be nervous. This means a lot to me."

"Oh! I apologize for being so late!" A dark-haired woman bustled in, breaking the professionals' interested look with one another about Serena. "I had an unexpected encounter at Mr. Shields and could not tear myself away from it." She sat down beside Dr. Hiroshi, shaking her head at everyone's inquisitiveness. "Do not worry. I will explain afterwards."

Serena bit her lip as she watched the woman take a stack of work out of her bag. Truthfully, all she wanted to do in that instant was ask how Darien had seemed or if he'd said anything about her. But, before she could gain the courage to open her mouth, Mrs. Taiko was talking again. "It's quite alright, Natsumi. Now I believe we should begin with introductions."

Only a few minutes later, after the professionals had had their turns and explained what the meeting was about, it was time to Serena to introduce herself. She stood slowly and unconsciously gripped the edge of the table to keep herself steady --both emotionally and physically. "Hello, ladies and gentle. My name is Serena Tsukino and I am Dar-- Mr. Shield's close friend reference. Um. I am sixteen years old and attend Juuban High School full time."

She swiftly sat down as she began losing her footing and her vision began to swim. Unfortunately she wasn't fast enough to hide the fact from the others and Dr. Vigil began to stand in worry. "Miss Tsukino? Are you sure you do not want to reschedule until you feel better?"

"Yes." Mrs. Taiko commented worriedly, half-standing herself, "We would all understand. I do not want to have you fainting on us--"

"No, no." She barely managed to refrain from shaking her head; it would only make her feel dizzy again. "I want to do this. I _need _to do this for both Darien and Hotaru. I am fine, I promise. No need to reschedule when we are all here, right?"

They eyed her a minute and Dr. Hiroshi frantically scribbled something down in his notes. Serena swallowed, beginning to fidget under the weight of their stares. Mrs. Taiko nodded once before continuing on gently. "Now, Miss Tsukino, for the record could you please state your relationship with Mr. Shields."

The blonde frowned as she tried to think of words that would describe her weird relationship with the college student. _'I can't really say that I used to think he was a jerk or he loves teasing me. There's so much more than that between us. He does --_did_-- save me on a regular basis and he always helps me. It doesn't matter if he thinks I'm afraid of him and probably hates me… he means a lot to me.' _"Darien-- I mean, Mr. Shields." She amended as she shot the professionals an apologetic look.

"You may call him by his first name, Miss Tsukino," Ms. Une said quietly, "if it makes you feel more comfortable."

"Thank you, ma'am." She uttered quietly, "As for the question, during the week I stayed at this hospital, many things occurred to me. One of them being a realization I think I knew, at some level, all along. Darien is my best friend. There is no doubt about it in my mind. He… he's there when I need him and even when I don't. He knows exactly what to say when I'm angry or--or when I'm upset. He's just been _there _for me, even when I never took the time to notice, and I'll always be grateful for that."

"How long have you known Mr. Shields?" Dr. Hiroshi questioned.

"Almost two years." She blinked, a little shocked with the unconscious answer_. 'Has it really been that long? It feels like yesterday when I threw that paper and hit his head.'_ She almost smiled but quickly sobered up when she remembered what had happened between the two of them last night. _'And if I don't fix it, then there won't be a third year of knowing him…'_

"Could you please give us your intake on Mr. Shields's character, Miss Tsukino?" Dr. Vigil asked as he leaned forward slightly.

"Darien isn't perfect but, then again, no one is. He's incredibly smart, though; honestly I won't be surprised if he was a genius or something. He--he's always so _focused _in everything he does, making sure it's done to the every best of his abilities no matter what. There was one time he has at the arcade and he--" She stopped, biting her lip as she noticed she'd begun to ramble slightly.

"It's all right." Mrs. Taiko said gently, "Please continue."

"Sorry, ma'am." Serena smiled sheepishly but nodded in acceptance. "I think that there is one thing you should all know about Darien before anything else is said. He is a private person; quiet and prone to keeping to himself. This… may seem trivial to you all, but I assure you that it is not." She looked at everyone intently, not even noticing their looks as she unconsciously drew herself up and her words became more confident. "Being that he is so private, when he does let someone close to him, he protects them fiercely and does everything in his power to ensure their wellbeing is taken care of. The fact that he is extending his home to Hotaru shows just how much he has grown to care for her. She has become incredibly important to him, and myself for that matter."

Dr. Hiroshi folded his hands under his chin, studying the female who had suddenly gone from fumbling girl to confident young woman. "Before I ask my question, Miss Tsukino, are you aware of the situation with Mr. Shield's parents?" She frowned faintly, giving a nod. "Then, given the light of that… do you believe he would be an appropriate guardian for a child such as Hotaru?"

"Indisputably." She asserted, "I'm positive he would be the best possible guardian, frankly. Unfortunately Darien knows what it is like to lose a family but, because of it, he would be able to help Hotaru see that life can go on. That, while the pain never completely goes away, you do not have to let it consume your life. I-- I hope you do not mind me saying this but I don't believe Darien should be judged on the fact that his parents are gone. No one should. In my opinion, he would be perfectly willing and capable of giving Hotaru all the love and supports she needs. Despite how much he has had in his own life."

"And why do you say that?"

Serena turned her attention to the social worker. "It is like I said, Ms. Une. When Darien lets someone close to him, he does everything he possibly can to guarantee that they are fairing well. Take myself for example. I had been a patient at this hospital for a week and, despite the fact that he has a bad association with such places, Darien visited me continuously _every _day. He readily put aside his own reservations to see to it that I wasn't lonely and had everything I may need. He has already been doing the same for Hotaru. Anything from asking her if she would like to visit her mother when she is upset to something as simple as knowing when to just sit beside her, silently letting her know that not everyone is as horrible as she believes." Her brow ticked faintly, "_Certain _nurses at this hospital could care less about what they say or how they react to Hotaru yet Darien is the _exact _opposite because he had been in her position once himself. He _understands _her. Understands her reactions and knows when someone has pushed her too hard. I cannot imagine anyone who would be able to care for her as Darien is already showing he can. And is. He has been _instrumental _in Hotaru's recovering and I have every belief that if she had not met him, she would be far worse off."

The blonde watched as all the professionals frantically scribed away at their notes, wondering what they were writing. She hadn't been hesitant in a single word thanks to her sudden confidence and she hoped they noticed that. "Now with that said," Her eyes snapped to Dr. Vigil as he placed down his pen, "could you please describe the interactions you have seen place between Hotaru and Mr. Shields, Miss Tsukino?"

She nodded, "Certainly. The first time I saw the two together…"

* * *

Darien eased open Hotaru's hospital door as quietly as he could, lest the child be asleep. Instead, he saw that she was wide-awake and looking through one of the books that either Serena or her mother had no doubt said she could keep, the one about the fabled rabbit in the moon. Idly, he glanced at the department store bags resting against the wall that Nurse June had returned that horrible day. The girl had refused to touch anything inside of them; from the toys and books to the clothes. But, now she was wearing a pair of purple pants and a white long-sleeved shirt with a yellow butterfly on them --a particular outfit he could remember Serena declaring "was just _so _cute!" as she'd curiously rooted through the bags. And she wasn't reading on her own bed, she was on _Serena's _old one. With _Serena's _old book.

He winced as the door closed rather loudly behind him, making Hotaru's head snap up sharply. Before he knew what was happening, she was quickly tossing down the book and scrambling off the bed via his bedside chair. He sighed. "I miss Serena too, Hotaru."

The child froze in her tracks, a hand still resting on the seat of his chair and her feet firmly planted on the floor. She looked at him and he could see her eyes watering in the artificial light.

"You don't have to hide that you're sad she's gone." He said as he walked over to her frozen form. He had a brief thought of picking her up but was afraid of how she would react so he sat down on Serena's bed beside her instead. "Everyone would understand you miss her. I know I would."

She continued to watch him silently, her eyes conveying what she wanted to say: She missed Serena more than she'd thought she would. He gave a sad kind of smile. "She does that, doesn't she? Sneaks into the barriers around your heart before you know it."

Slowly she nodded, showing just how much she understood. Sometimes he was amazed by how much she comprehended. She was one of those children who were remarkably mature and wise, only their child-like innocence and wonder reminding you that they _were _children. "She did that to me too. Before I knew it, she'd become my best friend and I still don't understand how it happened. Or when, for that matter."

Cautiously Hotaru walked the few steps to him and, biting her lip, lifted her hands to be picked up. Darien smiled as he obliged and placed her in his lap. "I don't blame you for missing her." He quietly told her bowed head, "Not many people have been nice to you but Serena… she was the _nicest_, wasn't she? She would always read to you, play with you, or just sit with you. She knew what you needed better than any of the nurses or doctors."

The girl's dark hair brushed his chest as she nodded, taking a shaky breath. "But, just because she isn't here now doesn't mean you're never going to see her again or spend time with her." He continued, "She cares about you too much to forget you. I have a feeling you'll see her again. _Soon_. Okay?" Again she nodded, so Darien risked a chance at combing a hand through her hair comfortingly. He had to smile as she leaned against his chest heavily and let him continue.

"I'm glad you have a friend like Serena." He murmured to her after a few minutes, "I would have done anything to have someone as great as her around when I was like you." She looked up at him in amazement, making his hand pause in its movements. "I guess you wouldn't remember when I said that, would you? You were too upset because of Nurse June." He gave a weak smile as she scowled. "I agree. Not a very nice lady. She… she'd been my nurse once too. My parents died when I was a little older than you are. We were in a accident and I only got a little hurt but my parents…" He shook his head, his hand working through her hair faster, "When I got hurt, I got something called amnesia. I couldn't remember anything. All I could remember was that my name was Darien. Not where I lived or--or my last name or anything else."

Hotaru watched the man in rapt attention. Suddenly she was beginning to realize just how alike they were: he had been here with all the scary healers and people that didn't understand before too. Timidly she placed her small hand on top of the larger one resting against her side. Darien looked down in surprise before smiling. "Thanks, Hotaru." He whispered as he brought her head to his chest and hugged her, "I… I just wanted to say that I'm glad you have someone like Serena around now. I don't want you to end up like me. I was angry for so long…" He sighed, looking down and catching sight of the girl's purple cast. He ran his fingers over a particular curly handwriting. "Do you remember this promise?"

Hotaru looked down curiously. The cast had only been signed by five people --Darien, Serena, Serena's mommy, Nurse Saji and Dr. Vigil (the last two with suspicion because they _were _healers)-- but she'd know that handwriting no matter what. It had been the first. She slowly nodded to his question.

"Serena promised that she would take you to the park and buy anything you want to celebrate your freedom. She wouldn't just forget that. She never breaks a promise. I'm sure you'll see her before you know it."

"He's right, you know." Two heads covered in dark hair snapped up at the voice. Serena gave a tentative smile from where she was leaning against the closed door. "I'll never break a promise."

* * *

"Mr. Davis," Mrs. Taiko quickly hid a smile at the squirming child on the serious-looking man's lap. "how long have you known Mr. Shields?"

"For three months. Ever since I moved in next door to him, ma'am." Nephrite answered confidently as he adjusted his daughter so she was sitting on his thigh with her legs laying over the other. Once she realized she was going to get down any time soon, Rose abruptly began tugging at the collar of his white dress shirt.

"How long ago was the first time he watched your daughter?" Dr. Vigil questioned.

The man's brow furrowed in thought. "Approximately two months ago, I believe it was."

"You allowed a relative stranger to watch your child after only knowing him for a month?" Dr. Hiroshi asked curiously as he made a notation of the time in his paperwork.

'_Relative stranger. Sure.'_ Nephrite smiled slightly. "I have known of others allowing people they met minutes beforehand watch their children. I trusted Mr. Shields, even after only knowing him for a month. He, after all, helped find my daughter when she snuck out of my apartment only a week after we introduced ourselves. He even returned her before I made it to the elevator."

"What is your opinion of Mr. Shields and his personality? In general, that is." The psychologist continued.

'_Darien? Not quite a lot. But Endymion's personality? Plenty enough to know that both men are almost exactly the same.'_ "He is very caring and helpful." He said out loud, "I had not been to Japan in many years and he helped myself and my daughter adjust to the culture. All without being asked."

"You are _not _Japanese?" Ms. Une asked somewhat incredulously as she took a closer look at the man, "Your Japanese is flawless. Right down to the accent."

"No, I'm not a native. I learned Japanese at school for my impending job." He grinned charmingly. "And thank you for the compliment, ma'am. I'm afraid I did not have much practice in America before I left."

"You are American, then?" Mrs. Taiko asked with an intrigued smile.

His brow furrowed. "Ethnically speaking, I suppose I am. I had not lived there for many years, however, and had only relocated there temporarily for work. I'd planned on returning home as soon as possible but then I met my future wife and stayed there with her after we married."

Rose looked up curiously, her tugs stopping. "Mama?"

Neil gave the girl small, sad smile. "Yup. Remember, sweetie? I told you how I meet your mommy in New York City. That's in the United States. America." His smile turned into a fond one as she nodded and went back to tugging at his shirt.

"What else do you know about Mr. Shields, Mr. Davis?" Dr. Hiroshi asked after a moment, "As he is your neighbor, I am sure that you have some insight that the others may not."

"I know he is also very smart and studious." Nephrite smile in amusement. "Almost every time I see him, he seems to have a book or schoolwork in his possession. He is very quiet, as well. Never rowdy and always at home at appropriate times. He is a genuine polite man, easily willing to assist anyone in need of help."

Ms. Une smiled knowingly. "And how well do you believe he cares for Rose?"

The child looked up at her name, beaming at the lady she recognized from this morning. Nephrite smiled. "I think perhaps you should ask Rose that question. She would be the one to know best how he treats her." He looked down at his daughter and brushed her bangs out of her eyes. "Well, Rose? Do you want to tell these people what you think of Darien?"

Her grin, if possible, only got wider. "Dare-Dare! _Wuv _Dare-Dare!"

All the occupants of the room chuckled at the girl's enthusiasm. "Now Rose," Dr. Hiroshi began gently, making Nephrite raise an eyebrow. He'd been starting to wonder if the stern man actually was a child psychologist. "what do you and Mr. Sh-- _Darien _do when you spend time with him?"

The child frowned in concentration. "Dare-Dare read to Rose. D'aw and moo--_moosic. _Oh!" She giggled suddenly and clapped happily. "An' make rose!"

Nephrite rose a curious eyebrow. This wasn't something he'd heard about before. "What do you mean 'make Rose', sweetie?"

"_Rose_." She insisted. "Dare-Dare make rose!" She rolled her eyes as everyone continued to look at her funny. She caught sight of a picture on the wall seconds later and pointed to it excitedly. "'ike 'at! 'ower!"

Everyone else's eyes riveted to the wall, spotting a painting of a vase of violets on a table. Nephrite laughed and shook his head. "Flowers! Darien …makes flowers for you." His eyes widened in realization as it occurred to him just _what _the man was showing his daughter. _'Endymion could form any flower he wanted to. Darien must be able to too. And he showed Rose. Uh-oh.'_

"He makes you flowers?" Mrs. Taiko asked, still baffled, "You mean like origami? Does he make flowers with paper, Rose?"

"No. _Moo-gic_!" The child nodded gleefully as she remembered the word. "Dare-Dare said moo-gic trip."

"You mean a magic trick, sweetie." Nephrite laughed again, relieved that the man's secret would be safe. It was normal to created flowers with magic tricks. _Stage _magic tricks, that is.

The others, finally catching on, laughed also. Ms. Une smiled gently at the child as she went to picking at her dress. "Okay, Rose. Darien does magic tricks for you. And you said he reads to you?" The girl looked up and nodded with a smile. "Then he draws with you and you also said music, does he listen to music on CDs or play it himself?"

"On E-Ds." The brunette smiled. "Dare-Dare wuv…" She trailed off with a sudden frown, "s'eepy moo-sic." She closed her eyes and slumped against her father's chest before giggling and opening them again. "Make Rose s'eepy."

Nephrite smiled wryly and looked up at the professionals. "I have a feeling Rose is saying Darien listens to classical music with her." When Rose giggled, clapping her hands again, he knew he was right. _'At least she's getting culture somewhere.'_ He thought humorously, _'Figures it'd be from Endymion.'_

Dr. Vigil smiled. "Do you do anything else with Darien, Rose?"

"P'ay with 'eddy--" She gasped and suddenly wiggled out of her father's lap. Nephrite gave a bemused smile as she practically crawled down his leg to get to the ground.

"Rose, sweetheart, _what _in the world are you doing?"

The determined child didn't say anything, just crawled under the table slightly and pulled at the backpack her father had put below his chair. It was toddler-sized, purple with a big pink star on the front of it, and something she'd begged her father to buy the second she'd seen it at the toy store not long ago. She quickly hugged the object to her chest as Nephrite picked her up and placed her back in his lap. "Rose?"

She grinned charmingly, forcing him to roll his eyes even as he chuckled. Seconds later she was digging through her backpack and reemerging with her battered stuffed bear in hand. "'eddy!" She declared as she hugged it to her chest. She turned around to look at the other grown-ups, thrusting the animal out toward them briefly. "Dare-Dare 'ike 'eddy too!"

Nephrite gave the others an apologetic smile as they laughed. "Forgive her enthusiasm. She's spending the night at Darien's and insisted on bringing everything now so she had it when she leaves with him from here."

Ms. Une smiled but didn't comment as she went back to the original reason for the meeting. "Mr. Davis, do you believe Mr. Shields would make a proper guardian for a child? Not just as a temporary one but possibly a permanent one."

He nodded, not an ounce of hesitance in his actions. "Yes. He is perhaps the most responsible person I know, even if I have only known him for such a short time. I know with the way Rose absolutely adores him, he is more than capable of carrying for any child and providing for their needs no matter the duration. Given what you told me about this particular child and her situation, I believe Darien would be the most appropriate guardian of her person. Especially since he has lost parents of his own."

The four professionals gave each other an almost unreadable look before writing in their notes. _'Hope you know what you're getting into Darien, especially if I just read that look right.'_ Nephrite thought as he watched Rose chat away to her teddy bear. He gave the girl a fond smile as she looked up at him. _'Welcome to the world of parenthood.'_

* * *

"Well, I guess neither of us will be going on extended trips." Serena commented wryly as she seated herself on Hotaru's bed, the girl wrapped tightly around her with no signs of letting go. Arms wrapped around her neck, legs around her waist; she'd been in the same position for twenty minutes since she'd raced off Darien to her. But, honestly, she wouldn't have it any other way. "Oh! I missed you _so _much!"

The child nodded against her neck and Serena frowned as she felt hot tears on her skin seconds later. "Hotaru…?" She pried the girl away slowly, her frown deepening as she saw the tears glimmering in her purple eyes and down her cheeks. "Did you really think I wouldn't come visit you anymore?" The girl's eyes downcast in answer. "But, yesterday I told you that I would come visit all the time and, besides, Darien was right. I'd never break my promise to you."

She glanced over at the said man who still sat on her old bed. He hadn't said a word since she'd first spoken by the door. "Right, Darien? You'll help me break Hotaru out so we can all go to the park for a picnic or something."

He nodded slowly, his eyes taking in the blonde warily. "Yeah. Kind of working on it now, actually. A permanent breakout."

Her brow furrowed until she remembered the guardianship. She giggled, hoping jokes would ease the tightness she could see in his shoulders. "Not exactly what I meant, but hey, that works too." Her nose crinkled. "I wouldn't want to wear monochrome jumpsuits when we get caught and sent to jail anyways."

He immediately shot one eyebrow up. "Monochrome, Serena?"

She shrugged, feeling a slight blush forming high on her cheeks. "Yeah. Monochrome. I've been feeling …kinda smart today." Her lips twitched into a faint smile. "I used the words 'indisputably' and 'instrumental' earlier. How often does that happen?"

His eyes narrowed in on her, completely bypassing most of her words. "And how else are you feeling? …Exhausted?"

She smiled even as her eyes watered in relief. _'He still asked how I'm doing…' _She was tired of _others _asking how she was doing, yes, but Darien was different: it have her some hope. "No. I'm okay. After my meeting earlier Mom made me go home to eat and take _another _nap. Said I looked too strained. I told her I _wasn't _but she said that was the only way she'd let me visit Hotaru so…"

She could see how his eyes instantly sharpened. "Is your back bothering you? Any stiffness in your muscles?"

"No, and yes." She answered truthfully with a slight shrug, "I had to ask my mom for a ride here because I knew I wouldn't be able to make it walking. Even partially." Her smiled widened she glanced down at Hotaru. "You're beginning to sound like a doctor again. Or is it the concerned parent this time?"

He looked down at child too. She wasn't exactly sleeping but he could see how utterly comfortable she was lying here against Serena, her breaths even despite the little sniffles he could hear every once in a while. He could tell she wasn't even remotely listening to them either, just drawing comfort from their presence. "Maybe I have a reason to practice that route now."

Serena smiled softly as she tightened her grip around the girl and ran a hand through the dark hair like Darien had not long ago. "Then I say you're doing a pretty good job. Especially with how you were talking to this little one earlier." She looked up in time to see a blush break out across the bridge of the man's nose and his cheeks before he quickly looked away. "Aw, come on." She teased, "Nothing to be ashamed of. You were very paternal."

He cleared his throat, shaking his head. "Doesn't mean anything unless I'm granted guar-- you know what." He amended, glancing at Hotaru. Better safe than sorry in case she _was _listening more than he thought.

"I know you will." She said positively as she continued to stroke Hotaru's hair comfortingly, "You forget that you have me on your side too. I told them just what I thought of the both of you together."

He looked at her curiously. "And just what was that?"

"That you would be perfect for her. And she for you." She dipped her head slightly so she wouldn't have to met his eyes in case he was mad. "I hope you don't mind but I kinda made that my closing argument, I guess you could say. That you would both be good for each other considering you'd endured similar situations. "

"Maybe we would…" His eyes snapped up as he saw Serena wince as she tried to adjust Hotaru in her lap without disturbing the girl. He ran a frustrated hand through his hair. "You didn't have to go to the meeting, you know. You were obligated to. It was …insensitive of me to ask you to when you're still recovering."

She looked up at him, pursing her lips. "No, I wasn't obligated, but that doesn't mean it wasn't important to me. I wasn't going to ignore that meeting because I was a little tired or sore. Or--or," she bit her lip, "because we'd had a misunderstanding."

His eyes met her, suddenly unreadable. "Misunderstanding? Do you really think that's all last night was?"

"Then tell me what it was so I can fix it." She retorted swiftly, "I don't like us being at odds like this."

"We aren't at odds, Serena. I understand perfectly where we stand now."

Her eyes watered at the conviction in his voice. "Then, please, share so _I _can know. I know exactly where _you're _standing but for all I know you've jettisoned me to Pluto in your mind."

He looked at her in surprise before laughing. She was relieved to hear it was genuine amusement and not scorn. "I think I might like this increased vocabulary, Serena. It will sure keep me on my toes."

Her smile became thin as she noticed he was trying to slither out of the question. "Don't get your hopes up too high for this vocabulary. I don't know how long it's going to last. For all I know it's just a side effect of that spurt of confidence I received during my meeting and could wear off anytime. And you never answered by question." She pointed out, making his light chuckles die down, "Don't you dare pretend to not remember it, either. I want an answer. Where do you think we stand?"

He sighed, his eyes lowering back down to Hotaru. "We're not discussing this. Not here. Not now."

"Then when _can _we?" She pleaded, quiet to avoid bothering the child, "Don't you dare think that we're just going to let this go and ignore it in hopes it'll go away. I _promised _myself I was going to fix this and that is one promise I will absolutely never break."

"There's nothing to fix." He said with a forced calm, "You finally told me how you really feel and I'll accept it. You made it perfectly clear that you don't need me anymore. That you don't _want _me to protect you. Fine. You don't have to worry about that anymore."

Serena's eyes widened in alarm and she could swear the sudden lump in her throat was her heart. "W-what do you mean?" She whispered fearfully. _'D-does this mean he doesn't care about what happens to me anymore!?'_

He shrugged as he folded his arms across his chest. "That you don't have to worry about me protecting you anymore. I'll go on doing what I do and you can just turn a blind eye to it. Nothing is going to stop me from doing what I think is necessary to protect you. Not your words. Not your pleas. Not even your fear of me."

"Y-you _don't _hate me, then?" She asked shakily, unable to think of anything but that at the moment.

He looked at her in surprise. "Why would I hate you?"

She swallowed thickly and bowed her head. "I--I said awful things last night. I didn't--- I didn't mean half of them either. I don't want you thinking that I hate your or-- or are scared of you when it's not true. I appreciate everything you've done for me. _Everything_."

Darien looked down at he felt his hands clinch against his jean-clad thighs. "Stop it." He hissed, "Stop lying to spare my feelings. I heard your words, Serena, but more importantly I saw your _eyes_. You were terrified of me and… and I don't blame you either."

Her lips parted in shock slightly while her eyes became red-rimmed as she fought back the sudden urge to cry. "N-_no_!" She uttered disbelievingly, "I'm not --_not!_-_- _afraid of you. Y-you were just so angry and-- and your _ey_--"

He was shaking his head, not listening to her words. "I was there too. Just-- just _stop_. Leave it be."

"W-why can't you--" She paused, biting her lip so hard she tasted blood, "Why wouldn't you just _accept _what I'm saying? I--I was stupid last night. I didn't mean _any _of that! I'm sorry for making you think I was scared of you and didn't need you. I--I tried stopping you, to tell you, but you wouldn't stop…"

She watched him nervously, waiting for his reaction, but he just sat there with his face hidden and his fingers clinched against his thighs. She sighed; she doubted threatening him with a shoe to his face would make him answer. _'Might make him laugh though…'_ She opened her mouth, "Darien?" only to snap it shut and blink in confusion. _'Well, that wasn't my voice.'_

"Dare-Dare!"

'_And that certainly wasn't my voice either.'_ She thought, somewhat annoyed and somewhat bemused, as she turned to the door. There stood a man with short, mahogany hair --probably a few years old than Darien-- with a little brunette toddler attached to his hip.

"Hey, you two." Her head snapped over to her previously-silent companion --'_and stubborn!'_-- to see him trying to smile as he stood up and walked over to the duo. "Glad you managed to find the right room."

The other male laughed. "Only after half a dozen wrong turns, of course. Then we kept getting stopped because the nurses wanted to fawn over Rose."

Darien chuckled as he looked down at the child. "And you enjoyed the attention didn't you?"

"Gave Rose 'andy!" She giggled as she waved around a blue lollypop.

"Which you can't have," The brown-haired man said somewhat dryly, "because it'll keep you up all night long. Which would ensure that Darien wouldn't get a wink of sleep."

Darien laughed again, not as strained as his first attempt was. "Talking from experience there, Neil?"

"Yeah. Val about kicked my a--" He stopped, wincing as he glanced down at his daughter, "butt too. I mean, it was just a little tiny packet of frosted animal crackers. No big deal, I thought." He shook his head woefully. "Boy was I wrong."

Serena giggled. "It was near her bedtime too, wasn't it?"

"You… know… it." Nephrite's mouth dropped open in shock at the sight of the woman sitting on the bed. Sure, the clothing was unfamiliar by far --a pair of pink velour yoga pants, yellow shirt, and a matching pink jacket-- but he would recognize that face anywhere. And that hair. _'S-Serenity!? What in Terra! They--they didn't tell me she was here __**too**__!'_

The blonde's brow furrowed slightly as the man continued to stare at her _and _her hair in disbelief. "Um. Hello?"

Darien rose an eyebrow when his neighbor didn't answer, or stop gaping. "What's wrong with you, Neil? You look like you've seen a ghost."

Nephrite blinked a few more times, stupefied more than anything, before forcing out a weak chuckle as he looked at his king. "Well, yeah, almost like a ghost. Who'd of thought you had a girlfriend. Especially such a pretty one. Sure took me by surprise."

Darien choked on air at the blunt comment while Serena's face blossomed into a deep blush "Not you too." She groaned, desperately wishing to bury her red face in her hands but unable to because of her grip on Hotaru. "I suppose I should think you for calling me pretty, at least." She giggled after a minute.

"Pwedy wady!" Rose cheered from her position, clapping her hands once, "'ike Mama!"

Serena laughed as she stood up, cautious because of her passenger. "Why, thank you. Mamas are always the prettiest of them all." She looked down at Hotaru only to see the girl's eyes watching the room's new visitors warily. "Don't you think your Mama is pretty too, Hotaru?" She looked up, brow furrowed, but made no response in the least.

"So…" Nephrite asked, looking back and forth between the two, "You _aren't _dating? Not even a little?"

Darien shook his head rapidly and Serena frowned at the sharp pain she felt in her heart at the movement. _'Ouch. I've screwed everything up between us so much now he doesn't even want people to __**mistake **__we're dating? Must be because he sure didn't act that way when Doctor Rupert said he was my boyfriend and that wasn't long before….'_ "We're not." She uttered quietly, daring a glance at Darien, "Just friends, right?"

Mercifully he nodded but still didn't look at Serena, making her wince as her frown deepened. "Friends."

Nephrite rose an eyebrow at the exchange. _'Okay. I think I was five minutes late in walking in on something important.'_ "I apologize for the misunderstanding then." He grinned at Serenity's reincarnation. "But I'm afraid that I can't take back the compliment. It's too true." He chuckled as she blushed again, only laughing harder at the swift glare Darien gave him. _'Ah. Jealously rears its ugly head. At least if they __**were **__dating, he wouldn't feel so threatened. Not that he realizes he feels that way, of course.'_ He sent the man an amused grin, his mirth only increasing as Darien blinked as if realizing just what he was doing.

Serena giggled, walking over to the man. "Well, since Darien seems to be so tightlipped today," A sudden crease in her brow told Nephrite she was referring to something else almost entirely, "I think we'll have to introduce ourselves. I'm Serena Tsukino." She smiled as she looked down at the child she was holding and hiked her up higher on her hip. "And this is Hotaru. We were roommates together in here until yesterday."

"Neil Davis." He copied Serena's movements to bring focus on his oddly-silent and observing daughter. "And this is my daughter Rose." His brow furrowed. "Roommates? I… hope everything is okay now." Brotherly protectiveness kicked in as he absently scanned her for any injuries or other ailments only to find none visible.

She shrugged a little but he could instantly see how her eyes shifted away from his. "The doctors decided to release me so I'm pretty sure I'm okay."

"Except you should be allowing yourself to recover and not running around all over Tokyo instead." Darien suddenly said as he walked over to stand next to the blonde, "You should be getting home soon, anyways. Sunset is at four-thirty. When is your mother coming to pick you up?"

Serena pursed her lips until they were white, angry at his seeming dismissal. "She isn't." His eyes snapped over to her but she calmly ignored his gaze. "I'm supposed to call her when I'm ready to leave but it's not as if I'm leaving _now_. I'm still visiting Hotaru. Besides, it wouldn't be fair to make her drive all the way here when I'm sure she's busy with other things. No. I'll just walk down to the terminal and catch a train home later."

"They shifted to winter hours last Monday and if you don't leave soon, you'll miss the last train that stops closest to your neighborhood." He informed her, "That means you'll make to walk further and we both know that you can't without it doing more harm than good."

"And just how do you know what neighborhood I live in? I thought you said you hadn't …_observed _those kinds of things." She said, narrowing her eyes.

"You know I wouldn't invade your privacy like that." He ground out irritably, "_Motoki _told me. You know, while you were …_sick _for so long. Now I wonder why he would know that _then_?"

Nephrite watched, enraptured, as they both flinched before looking away from each other. "I'm not leaving now." Serena replied calmly, "I'll just walk home later."

"I don't think so." Darien said firmly as he crossed his arms across his chest, "Like I want you fainting in the middle of nowhere, in the _dark_, for some pervert to find you. If you're so set on not leaving until later, then _I'll _drive you home and that's final." He gave her a sidelong glance. "Unless you want to leave now?"

"Y--you… _grr_…. Ugh! _Fine_!" She snapped, "See if I care you take me home!"

"Fine! Then I will!"

"Um. Rose is still staying the night with you, right?" Nephrite asked, his head bouncing back and forth between the two. "I can't possibly cancel this late." He looked down at his watch to see _3:40 _blazing back at him in blue. "I have less than a half-hour to get to their hotel."

Darien ran a tired hand through his hair. "Yeah, don't worry. I'm just going to have an extra stop before heading home now." He glanced down at Rose, whom was watching Hotaru curiously. "What do you say, Rosie-Posie? Did you bring something to play with?"

She looked up, nodding her head eagerly. "Yeah! Bot 'eddy--" She gasped suddenly, her eyes widening gleefully. "Dare-Dare! Make rose!"

Serena's focus snapped to Darien in surprise to see him rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. "You want another flower, huh?"

The brunette child continued to nod. "Yeah! To'd Dada 'bout rose!"

Nephrite winced for his monarchs' sakes as they both paled slightly. "Yes." He said as calmly as he could, "While she was describing what you two did together at the meeting, she claimed you did a stage magic trick for her. Making flowers."

"Stage trick, huh?" The dark-haired man muttered, looking down at the child.

"Yeah, Darien's really good at doing it too." Serena added hastily, her previous irritation at the man now completely gone. She pasted an almost too-stiff smile on her face. "I can never tell where he gets them from."

"He's done them for you?" Nephrite asked curiously, though truthfully not surprised that Darien shared his gift with her. Or that she was protecting the "secret" from him for Endymion. "And here I thought Rose was special."

Her laugh, at least, was genuine. "Yup. He's given me one or two of them before."

Darien flashed the blonde a thankful look, his own irritation gone also, before looking down at Rose. "So do you want a rose or a different flower this time?"

"Rose! 'ink rose!"

"One thorn-less pink rose coming right up then." He wiggled his hands around, making up things as he went, before pulling the appropriate flower out of his subspace pocket. He grinned as the child laughed. "Here you go, Rosie-Posie."

"T'ank 'ou Dare-Dare!" She cheered as she took it and smelled it.

Darien chuckled as he turned to Hotaru to see her watching in avid attention. "And how about you, Hotaru? Do you want one too?" Her eyes enlarged and she nodded slowly, obviously memorized by his trick. "Hmm. I wonder what kind of flower you should have." He snapped his fingers. "I know!" He moved his hands around the same foolish way before pulling a purple flower with rounded petals out of his subspace pocket this time. "What do you think? It's called a _Peony_, named after a Greek god of medicine and healing. In the language of flowers it means bashfulness. Shyness. But, it could also mean 'most beautiful' and I think that suits you also."

Serena smiled as the girl took the flower hesitantly and, looking over at Rose, lifted it up to her nose to smell. "I think all that suits you too, Hotaru."

Nephrite's eyebrow's rose as he looked at Darien. "Well?" He demanded somewhat gleefully, "Aren't you going to give the pretty lady a flower too?"

The dark-haired man blushed slightly even as Serena shook her head. "No, no. He doesn't need--" She stopped as her vision was suddenly blocked by a trademark red rose. She looked up at Darien with a frown. "No. I don't want you forced into giving me anything."

He rose an eyebrow. "I'm not being coerced into anything. I meant to give you a 'get well' gift yesterday, anyways, before…" He let the words hang in the air. "Just take them. I know you love roses too much to pass it up."

She narrowed her eyes. "You think you know me so well, don't you?" She sighed before grinning and taking the rose. "Unfortunately you do." Her lips parted in shock as Darien suddenly conjured up another, different flower. "Wha--?" She asked looking up at him. He shrugged but said nothing, so she ventured to take it. Seconds later, he conjured another. "Just what are you trying to prove?" She grumbled, but that still didn't stop her from taking it with a barely-suppressed smile.

Nephrite grinned widely as Darien continued to conjure flowers. He wasn't no flower-nut like Endymion was but he knew enough to recognize _those _particular flowers and their generalized meanings. Red rose: 'I Love You'. Common bluebell: 'Everlasting Love'. Forget-Me-Nots: 'Remembrance'. Gardenias: 'You're Lovely'. And, his favorite, orange blossoms: 'Your purity equals your loveliness'. _'Of course, common bluebells have a double meaning. It's Latin name is "Endymion non-scriptus" which should mean more to them than anything.'_

"What, no more?" Serena asked dryly as she took the latest flower and added it to the others, this time Darien not conjuring another. Truthfully it hadn't been a lot, just the five different kinds that he kept conjuring over and over. In the end she had small bundles of each that, when she put them all together in a bouquet, she could barely put her hand around.

"You don't like them?"

She looked up, trying to harden her resolve to say no, but she couldn't under the weight of his perfectly blank stare. "I do." She whispered, because it _was _the truth, "We just…" She shook her and didn't continue with the thought. "Thank you."

"So," Nephrite grinned as they both snapped their eyes to him as if just remembering his presence, which they probably had. "Are you going to break into flower language and tell us what those all mean, Darien?" He chuckled as the man's eyes darted from one flower to the next, his eyes widening and a flush forming high on his cheeks. Apparently they had all been formed unconsciously.

"They--they," He stuttered, sending the laughing man a dark glare, "They mean I want Serena to get better, of course." He finally said at last, nodding.

"You sure about that?" He chuckled harder as Darien ducked his head, not meeting anyone's eyes as his face got darker. _'Because to me it practically screams "I love you. Always have and always will. Every single thing about you is perfect and I worship the ground you walk on". Man, this is completely worth being late for. Now I have a story to share with Jed and Zoi. Endymion Version Two, Courting Attempt Number One.'_

Serena blissfully ignored the men as she showed Hotaru the flowers. "Pretty, huh?" The girl nodded, curiously running her fingers over them. Seconds later, Rose stretched as far as she could in her father's grip to do the same thing. The older toddler immediately froze, not even breathing, before snatching her hand back and staring at the brunette with wide eyes.

"Rose? Are you okay with me leaving now?" The little girl continued to tilt her head curiously at Hotaru for a minute longer before looking up at her father.

"W'en Dada back?

"Tomorrow morning. I'm going to go visit Un--" Nephrite winced, cutting himself off. He couldn't exactly say Uncle Jed and Uncle Zoi in front of the others if he was correct in his belief that they _were _this "Tuxedo Mask" and "Sailor Moon" he kept hearing about and seeing on the news. (He made an effort to watch it religiously now after learning if he'd ever taken the time to before, he would have found out Sailor Jupiter was active). And, thanks to those same newscasts, he'd seen his own image and those of Jadeite and Zoisite fighting against the Senshi --which wasn't good for anyone. "Some friends, okay? I'm going to stay the night with them but I'll come get you before lunch."

The brunette frowned. "Rose no go?"

"Nope. This is a grownup conversation." He said, sobering as he remembered exactly who he was gathering information about. _'Val, what did Rose mean when she said you're lost? Y-you __**died**__. I seen it with my own eyes on the news.'_ "Don't worry though, sweetie. You'll have lots of fun with Darien tonight."

Rose looked at Darien. "Dare-Dare, stay with 'taru?" She turned back to Hotaru whose eyes had grown even larger, this time in fear and surprise. "P'ay with 'taru! P'ay with 'taru!"

Darien winced as he saw his potential ward instantly bury her face into Serena's side, her whole body seeming to shake in fear. She wasn't quite ready to deal with an exuberant toddler like Rose was. "W-we can't stay long, Rose." He told the girl as gently as we could, "It'll be your bedtime soon. And Hotaru will need to go to bed too."

She frowned, her chin beginning to wobble in the upcoming of tears. "B-but…" She looked at Darien pleadingly, then her father, before focusing on Hotaru. She blinked, her tears disappearing as she took a closer look. "'taru 'ad." She suddenly declared.

Serena frowned slightly as she rearranged to girl to hug the front of her chest, catching sight of terrified tears as she did. "It's okay, Hotaru." She murmured comfortingly, "Rose means no harm. She just wants to play with you. Like me and Darien do." The child shook her head wildly, frantically clutching at the blonde's neck and burying her head as far back as it could go. Serena sighed, lying her head against her small friend's as she sent Rose a sad smile. "I'm sorry. Hotaru isn't ready to play with you yet, okay? Maybe one day."

"No want 'taru 'ad." The girl agreed before releasing a wide, obviously fake, yawn. "Rose s'eepy."

Nephrite laughed, kissing the girl's forehead. "Good girl, Rose." He murmured to her under his breath. He looked to Darien only to see the man watching Serenity's reincarnation and Hotaru. _'I wonder if we realizes he's staring at them longingly? Idiot. Just go over there if you want to be with them.'_ He sighed, knowing the Endymion would have done the same thing. _'Content to watch but not to join in fear of ruining the moment.'_ He shook his head. "Darien, ready to handle to two children? I have to leave, _now_. I'm risking waking up tomorrow covered in some kind of practical joke as it is."

Darien chuckled as he looked away from the scene. "Yeah. I'm ready."

He looked down at his daughter inquiringly. "Okay, Rose, be a good for Darien, all right?" The girl nodded dutifully, though her eyes kept darting to Hotaru. "Don't worry, sweetie, she'll be okay. I love you."

She smiled, arms opening wide in a hug. "Wuv Dada too!" He returned her smile and hug, kissing the top of her head before lifting her up and letting her face Darien. "Dare-Dare!"

As his friend picked her up, Nephrite pulled the girl's little backpack off his shoulder and passed it over too. "Here. Everything should be in there. If not Rose knows where I hide the key. I'll be back at noon at the latest." He sighed, "Thanks for suggesting dropping her off with you while we were both here. Saves me a lot of time."

"Sure, no problem." Darien frowned as his neighbor's expression dimmed almost unnoticeably as Rose blew him a kiss. "I hope you're going to be okay, Neil. I really do."

Nephrite looked up in surprise before sighing. "Yeah. Me too." He ruffled his daughter's hair one last time, making her giggle, before looking at the other grownup in the room. "It was a pleasure to meet you, Serena." He gave her a small smile as she looked up from Hotaru. "Very …_enlightening_, I must say."

"It… was nice meeting you too." She replied, her brow furrowed by his last comment. _'How was meeting me enlightening?'_ She watched the man give a final wave and disappear out the door before looking to Darien for an answer but he only looked as confused as she felt.

* * *

Serena sighed as the car turned the corner and her house came into view. "It's the two-story one." Her lips twitched. "It has so many lights on it looks like it's trying to land a jet, doesn't it?" She glanced over at the clock. _6:18_. "No wonder. I called them almost an hour ago to tell them you were going to drive me home."

"Hm."

She glanced over at Darien to see him calmly nodding, his expression stoic. They'd barely spoken more than a handful of words to each other since Neil had left, the two of them silently agreeing that they couldn't leave themselves while Hotaru was still so upset. So, while one of them had comforted the petrified child, the other had entertained Rose before they would switched positions. Eventually Hotaru had calmed down enough to stop shaking and crying, though she still froze and clung to one of the grownups when Rose tried to talk to her or get her to play with the teddy bear she'd brought. Even then, it was decided that it was all right to eat dinner from the cafeteria before settling down to read a story --Serena and Rose lying on her old bed, Hotaru tucked away in hers, and Darien in the middle and reading from his chair. It hadn't taken long for Hotaru to fall asleep, both from her emotional day and the reader's soothing voice, and only then did the others cautiously leave. Though, not before Darien had conjured up a nice bouquet of peonies for the girl to find in the morning. Rose, in the meantime, had only lasted ten minutes into the ride before finally falling asleep in the car seat Neil had loaned Darien, her pink rose still woven into her hair like Serena had done for her.

The blonde stifled a little yawn as she watched her house get closer. "Sure was a day, wasn't it?"

"Yeah." Darien replied listlessly before he blinked, seeming to come out of a reverie, and looked at her. "You feeling okay still?"

"Yup. Just tired. I forgot what it was like to have little kids around."

He nodded and a few seconds later the car stopped in front of the Tsukino house. "Well, we're here."

She smiled and unhooked the seatbelt slowly, still hopeful from his concerned question. "Thanks for the ride." She bit her lip, glancing down at her lap where her hands were clinching her bouquet together. "Are-- are we okay now? With what happened yesterday and--and everything?"

His hands tightened on the steering wheel. "No."

Her smile slipped as her eyes began watering. "Oh." She opened the door quickly, desperately trying to keep any semblance of a smile on her face. "Thanks, again. Tell Rose it was nice meeting her when she wakes up, okay? She's such a sweetheart. A-and tell her father too. Even if he was kinda odd…"

She'd already swung her legs out and had just been preparing to stand up when he grabbed her shoulder and squeezed it to get her attention. "Serena," She held her breath. "That doesn't mean we aren't getting there. We'll be okay."

She looked back at him, uncaring how he could see her watery smile and teary eyes. "Will we really?" She shook her head as he opened his mouth and stood up out of the car. "Bye. Hopefully I'll see you later." She closed the door quickly, but as quietly as she could to avoid waking Rose, before walking away.

"Serena!"

She walked faster as he called out her name, hurrying past her parents that stood just inside of the door, until she was running up the stairs and into her room. She breathed heavily as she closed her door and leaned against it, opening her eyes only to see the glow of headlights through her window curtains. She walked over hesitantly to pull the curtain back a little, seeing his car still in the same position and Darien outside his door and looking toward her house. It took her a few minutes until she gained the courage to flicker her lights, letting him know she was okay, and only then did the headlights disappeared as he pulled away. Her smiled reappeared as she looked at the flowers she still held. _'Maybe we will be okay. One day.'_

* * *

"Has there been any more activity?" Artemis watched as two of the three people in the room quickly snapped to attention, giving him a salute that he returned with a nod before resuming their duties. He turned to the third person inquisitively. "Well?"

The person, a man in his mid-thirties with pale yellow eyes and a shock of orange hair --both due to his Solarian heritage, sighed as he took off his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "No, sir. It seems that the spikes this morning might have just been flukes."

"I have never known something like that to happen before. It was not simply one concise spike."

The man --more commonly known as Doctor Aidan Morris-- shrugged as he placed the glasses into one of the large pockets in his white lab coat. "I agree. It was many. Some of the others," he waved a brief hand to the technicians who were still observing the machines, "believe it could have been attributed to one of her visions."

A sharp eyebrow rose. "You do not hold share their belief?"

"No." The doctor shook his head faintly, "I have examined the effects of her visions many times over the past years. I had never seen anything like this. I… believe she's doing something. That _she _caused the spikes and not a vision. It is just a thought though," He added hastily when he saw the commanders' eyes narrow suspiciously, "I have no evidence to support my claims."

Artemis grumbled something unintelligible to himself before sighing. "Is she stabilized at least?"

"Now, but…" Aidan paused, hesitating, as he looked back to the woman on the bed. She was an enigma and had been since he'd taken over her case ten years ago when her previous doctor died of old age. That was how this particular job was --there was no leaving once you were hired. Sure you were granted sick days and vacations but they only allowed you brief reprieves. You still had to come back. There was no retirement. His wife thought it was "job security" but he knew what it really was: a secret he was forced to keep from everyone. He could barely discuss _anything _with _anyone_;his own wife believed he was just a general doctor here --and he was-- but _this _was his true job. It was also the technicians' job but they would never know the whole story that bound him here. Them, so close to the case, knew the woman had the strange power to receive prophetic visions --they had to know to explain what might happen to her-- but they had been led to believe she'd only fallen into a coma a few years ago. They would be gone before the truth ever came out or they noticed any oddities about her, just like all the others before them.

It wasn't as if they were really searching for the truth though. For them, working down here was a three year internship that would guarantee them a letter of recommendation from both himself and the Commander, a fine scholarship, and who knows what else. Their only requirement was secrecy. Don't discuss their work in depth, pretend they were regular technicians above ground --and never, _ever _describe their patient or her location. It was odd for them, he knew that, but truthfully he didn't blame Commander for all the job oddities and secrecy. It was bad enough that the patient received visions but the whole story… No. He couldn't blame Commander. Not when the patient was, in a sense, over ten-thousand years old but had the appearance of a woman in her late teens or so. If that ever got out, even to the technicians, it would be _very _bad.

"What is it, Doctor?" Artemis practically barked, on edge, as the man continued to stare at the bed and its occupant strangely. "But, _what_?"

Aidan sighed, looking back at his leader somewhat sadly. "I don't know how long it will last. She… she was in the red when I arrived this morning. Whatever she's doing, receiving visions or otherwise, I don't know how long it can last."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

The doctor ran a hand through his orange hair. "I don't know how much longer we can keep her alive." He said frankly, "She was in the _red _this morning, if I'd arrived even an hour late she might have been dead for all I know. But I just _don't know_. The… the only thing I'm certain of is that if this thing --whatever it is-- keeps up, she'll die. And if she's causing it, she'll be killing herself."

Artemis winced, flinching back from the doctor's harsh words. "There's nothing you can do for her?"

"I wouldn't even know where to begin. We still don't even know what's wrong with her." The doctor reminded, shaking his head. "It could simply be the age of time wearing down on her body and mind. It's a miracle it hasn't already, the way I see it."

The white-haired man sighed as he looked at the woman on the bed. _'Is this really the end Bellona? Has time finally caught up with you?'_ He shook his head vehemently at his thoughts. _'No. There has to be something I'm missing. Something that could heal you. Maybe I'll find it in Tokyo with everyone else.'_

* * *

Done: March 11, 2009 5:40 pm

Posted: March 11, 2009 6:30-ish pm

That last scene was a last minute thing. I figured you guys would want to know what was happening with Bellona with a change, as opposed to Rei (who is still fawning over Fake-Serenity with Luna in case you want to know. Lol).

_**FYI, for confirmation purposes:**_

Bellona _was _the woman in the slice of a scene earlier after Serena described her nightmare. And she _was _irritated. Take that however you want. :)

Hm. Not much else to say. Hope you guys all enjoyed the chapter. The next should be out soon (as it's a good one, if you ask me. Hehe. You'll be in for a surprise). Please review and ask questions, always appreciated.

_Tiger Celeste._


	27. Chapter 27

**Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with. Also I do not own Alice in Wonderland.**

**princess of mercury**: Haha, you and your roommate read my story? That's just awesome. I wish I had a roommate that shared my interests like that. Unfortunately, my roommate is usually my younger sister and she doesn't like reading in the least and that's one of my favorite things. XP Lol.

**Illithia**: Welcome to my story, then! :) Nah, Hotaru only sees Darien and Serena when she sees them --not Endymion and Serenity or anything. She _knows _there was a Princess from the moon --that being a story Pluto used to tell her-- but never saw her or anything. (Is that what you meant by 'like' Pluto? Or was it something else?) And, no. Neil wouldn't recognize her as Sailor Saturn. She never came in contact with anyone (Sen/Gen, etc) except for Pluto. It's part of her unknown back story that I probably should reveal one day… Thank you for reviewing!

**Butterfle**: Whoa, that's a lot of questions! Haha, I love it. Ahh, I so want to go into detail about what's wrong with Bellona, Rei, and why they are the way they are. Hmm… I think I'm going to say that the fact her ruby --what Áine broke out a few chapters ago, remember?-- is in half and blackened with corruption has a lot to do with things. It's in half. Rei is, well, scary-crazy. And Bellona is in a coma and her health is deteriorating. Everything is a product of everything else. …Does that make sense? o.o Nope, I can confidently say Makoto isn't in a coma. ….Are you _sure _Rose's dreams of Makoto is because of a connection? Hehe. And Hotaru didn't really sense anything from Rose; she was just overwhelmed by her. I mean, she'd been living in the Gates of Time with Pluto for who-knows how long and encountered almost no people. Faced with a child as exuberant and loud as Rose is, especially, what is she supposed to do? She just freaked out and had a panic attack. But I think Rose is a sweetie so I felt sad she couldn't play with Hotaru. Yeah, Darien getting Htoaru's guardianship is pretty much the most straightforward storyline in all this. No worries there. Pluto was sort of thrown into a loop, but she's always a mysterious lady so you just never know with her, right? Ah, it's okay you missed the Beryl/etc. looking at the core for the Golden Kingdom. That chapter just had too much information so it was kinda my fault. I'm still glad you noticed Áine's heritage, though. :) One last thing: Nope. Rei's eyes aren't naturally red. They've always been violet/purple/etc. Hope you enjoy this chapter! Can't wait for your next questions.

**Valkyrie Celes**: Yeah, I liked all 'Serenity' aspects in that meeting too. It was important to Serena and she sort of subconsciously sought out Serenity's poise and confidence so she wouldn't screw up. :) I thought it was just the thing for Serenity for make a noticeable appearance in. Well I'm glad you like how I write Rose's toddler speak. I've never really been around a toddler or any other small children so I took a shot in the dark based on my own research and TV and stuff. Yup, Darien's sweet. :) Just kinda of oblivious and sticks his foot in his mouth. -shakes head in dismay- Tsk tsk. (You'll see what I mean at the end of the chap). Aw, no General conversation this chapter; something else much more important showed itself instead. Major revelation, anyone? o.o

**Sonar de Mercury**: Ooh, you find out a speculation for that dark energy this chapter, as a matter of fact. Hope you like it. :) Haha, I thought of these technology-comments just a few hours ago. My family gets a Dell catalogue and my mom told me to stop drooling. XD Aw, lucky! I wish I was taking a class where I learnt all the new technology… That would be so awesome. Thanks for the kudos. Albreda is slowly growing on me, I think. Hehe. I can just imagine Ami as a master spy. XD I don't know if she'll come up with that plan in time though… Hopefully she does, right?

**Gwen xx**: Thanks for the review! I'm glad this is one of your favorite stories. :) You get a few answers for Áine's actions this chapter and make sure to read my A/N at the end for an explanation of things, too. Go ahead and ask me any questions you might have after everything is done and said, I'll be happy to answer what I can. Bellona and Rei are the same. To an extent, that is. … Jupiter isn't dead. O.o A few chapter back (when Áine was breaking out the gems) it was confirmed she was still alive because the barrier around her emerald was still active. So, you were right. I did bring her back. Haha. :)

**Tenshi-Chikyuu**: According to my planning, Rose is almost two. Her birthday being in February, this current chapter being November 23rd. She's a little advanced for her age based on my research (I've never really been around a young child so I had to do research. Haha.) But my justification is she's the daughter of a Senshi, right? Well, that and something else revealed in this chapter. She is pretty cute though, isn't she. Lol. She's my favorite OC. Dare/Sere should reconcile soon, hopefully. Like in a few chapters or less…

Sorry, this chapter isn't out as early as I wanted it to be --rewrite of something took longer than I expected. Anyways, I would like you all to put chap.25's: _'No.'_ she (Áine) whispered to herself, _'Kunzite did nothing to me when I sought him out. He still… he _still _loves me. I know it. And I'll be sure he never finds out my secret. Never.'_

You're gonna find out just what that secret is. Okay, so there's a lot of information in this chapter, a lot of things revealed, so watch out for all that. And I'm glad you guys all seem to like Rose, she really is my favorite OC. Just so cute! And Hotaru, Serena, and Darien are very family-like. I love that. :) And since I'm impatient for you all to read this chapter, that's all I'm going to say.

On with the story! Enjoy! Please R/R, always appreciated.

* * *

"Are you _sure _you feel up to going outside?" Ikuko asked worriedly, "You're already going to school tomorrow, don't you think you're straining yourself a little too much?"

Serena stifled a sigh as she pulled her white puffy winter coat off the hanger in the hall. "I _need _to move around, Mom." She explained as she pulled the coat on carefully, "Doctor Vigil said the more I move around, the less stiff my muscles will be. Besides," She smiled. "I've been housed in four-white walls all week, I just want to take a walk. To see other colors than white, beige, and more white."

The purple-haired woman chuckled. "Okay, okay. I think I understand your point. Just be careful, okay? And if you need a ride home, find somewhere to call me and I'll come get you."

"I will, promise." The blonde eagerly pulled open the door, taking a deep breath as a cold blast of hair hit her in the face. She glanced at the hall clock, seeing the dials pointing to nine and twenty-five."I'll see you in a few hours. I should be back around one or so, so I can finish going over my homework."

Ikuko crossed her arms over her chest with a wry smile. "I still can't believe you did every single piece of that work. I never thought I'd see the day."

She grinned. "Blame Darien. He wouldn't be quiet until it was done _and _he was satisfied with how well I did it." She shook her head at the thought of the man --but mostly his words last night-- before walking out and waving. "I'm gonna go now. Bye!"

"Bye." The housewife sighed as she closed the door behind her eldest child. _'Be careful, Serena. _Please_. I have a bad feeling about today.'_

* * *

Nephrite yawned as he dutifully followed an elderly tenant out of the elevator to the third floor, his hands filled with the woman's grocery bags. As she glanced over her shoulder to look at him, he forced his mouth closed and blinked rapidly to clear his eyes. "Thank you, again." The woman, about half his size and hunched over slightly with age, grinned. "These old bones can't quite handle what they used to."

He nodded acceptingly as he adjusted the three brown bags higher so they wouldn't slide. "It is all right, ma'am. My pleasure to help."

She laughed merrily. "If only there were more strapping young men like you around. It would make my life more cheerful."

Nephrite barely hid a grimace as she flashed him a flirting wink, unsure if it was genuine or not. _'Ah, she's as old as my mother for Terra's sake!'_ Luckily, the woman didn't see his expression as they passed by a slightly open door and she paused to look at it curiously.

"Hmm? I wonder if she's feeling better then." As she shook her head and continued on, she turned to her helper in explanation. "I haven't seen the sweet girl that lives there for days. I could only assume she was sick…"

He nodded absently. "I'm sure she is fine now. Colds and other illnesses are always rampant when the weather gets colder."

"Indeed, indeed." She paused a few doors down, pulling a lanyard off her neck with a shiny silver key attached to it. "Well, dearie, thank you so much for the help." She said as she unlocked her door, turning to him. "Would you mind it very much to place them on the counter for me? I can handle it from there."

"It'll be no problem." He stifled another yawn and quickly followed her in. A few minutes later, he was walking out after successfully warding off all her attempts to give him money or food for his assistance.

"Ugh, where is it!?" The mahogany-haired man froze as he passed by the same slightly open door a few doors away. "It can't be that hard to hide something like that!"

His brow furrowed as he remembered the elderly lady's words about the tenant not being seen for days. As he heard something fall and the same muffled voice exclaiming, "Shoot!" in surprise, his eyes narrowed in suspicion and he tiptoed to the crack to peer inside. The apartment was completely dark, no lights on and the shades drawn tightly; no sights of life anywhere. _'Something's wrong with this picture.' _He straightened up, glancing up and down the hallway to ensure it was empty, before silently slipping inside. He caught the door before it could open anymore, ensuring that no one would notice a difference it they looked out, and glanced around inside. It was similar to his own apartment, probably only one bedroom by its layout, and decorated with deep, dark earth tones of browns, greens, tans-- _'What…?'_

His eyes brows rose in surprise as he spotted a photograph on the table beside the couch. One with three _very _familiar woman. _'Val…'_ He picked up the gold frame slowly, his fingers running over the face of his smiling wife, her arms around the necks of Serenity and Albreda who stood on either side of her laughing. As he set it down slowly, he looked to the next pictures to see that they all had one Senshi or another; most had Albreda, Serenity, or Valkyrie but there were a few that even had Bellona-- _'Rei.'_ He corrected himself mentally, _'Bellona is back at Headquarters. In a coma. Commander admitted it himself.'_ He shook his head, looking around in wonder. _'But, besides that, which one of them lives here? There are two many photos for one __**not **__to.'_ His heart began to beat wildly, a suspicion forming in his mind at the colors of the décor. _'N-no. She _couldn't _of lived here. I-I would have seen her. Ran into her. Anything. I couldn't have missed her living in the same complex all these months… I-it has to be someone else. Like Serenity. She told me herself that she'd been at the hospital for a week. Y-yeah. She has to be the one who lives here.'_

"_Damn it!"_

He started at the sudden hiss, remembering the reason why he was in here. He strained his ears to hear an almost-frantic rummaging from the bedroom so, sending one last long look at the photographs, he began moving. It was moments later, at the threshold of the bedroom door, he became aware of the faint scent in the air. _'Kind of woodsy but very feminine.'_ He closed his eyes. _'Reminds me of giant redwoods. A forest of oaks. Something light underneath it all, like… like a rose. O-or lavender.'_ His brow furrowed. _'Where have I smelled this before? I'm positive I-- Val!'_ His eyes snapped open in shock. _'That's her favorite perfume. I bought some for her last birthday.'_ He swallowed thickly. _'S-she had to have visited S-Serenity, right? O-of course it would linger in the air.'_

He nodded to himself, barely noticing how his hand shook as he pushed open the door silently. Eyes already adjusted to the darkness, he instantly made out the form of someone digging through what looked like a closet. His eyes widened slightly as something was suddenly thrown backwards and toward him, his hand shooting forward to catch it just before it would have hit him in the chin. He glared at the figure, wondering if it had been intentional, but they continued to rummage unaware of his presence.

He looked down at the object he held only for his eyes to widen in surprise. A black velvet box. A _ring _box. He held his breath, fearful, as he opened it. _'No…'_ His mouth moved in a silent whisper, unable to believe the proof that was staring at him in the face. _'This-- this was her apartment. Valkyrie was here all along. Five floors down.'_

"For Goddesses' Sake, where could she have put it?" His head snapped, eyes narrowing in murderous anger at the sight of his wife's bedroom. Clothes and shoes flown everywhere, posters half-hanging off the walls, trinkets lining a shelf toppled over and disorderly, a stack of CDs fallen down and littering the ground. His hands clinched at his sides as he looked back at the intruder. They'd completely ransacked the room --destroyed the _last _remainders of the life his wife had created.

So consumed in his rage, he didn't think as the intruder sat back with a sigh. He just attacked.

The intruder gave a startled shout of surprise as he grabbed them from behind and hauled them off the ground in one solid movement. They struggled, wringing to and fro to get some kind of mobility in their arms but he kept a firm grip around their waist to keep the appendages pinned. He moved backwards with the intent of dragging the person into the living room but instead lost his footing on something or other lying on the ground. He grunted as he fell back against the wall, his shoulder flipping the light switch as he tried to right himself. As bright light filled the room, he looked down only to almost drop his captive in surprise. "A-Áine?"

The woman immediately froze, her eyes snapping up to his incredulously. "Who the blazes-- _Nephrite_?" She groaned once she recognized the oddly short-haired man. "Not you too! It is really necessary for _all _three of you to be in Tokyo?"

"The question," He hissed in answer instead, "is what the hell are _you _doing _here_?" He nodded toward the destroyed room, tightening his grip around her waist. "Valkyrie is _dead!_ Leave her and her memories in peace!" She kept her mouth shut, waiting for his next actions. "I asked you a question!"

She barely hid her grin as, just as expected, he loosened his grip to turn her around to face him. The second he did so, she stabbed one of her heels into his shoe and once he bent down in reflex, grabbed him around the neck. She curled her body upward, swinging slightly to gain momentum, before using her grip on his neck as leverage and vaulting herself over his head in a summersault. She straightened out at the last second, using her feet to push him face first into the carpeting. He shot forward, unable to catch himself, even as she caught herself on her outstretched hands and flipped into a standing position just outside the doorway. She sent his groaning form a smirk. "Always pathetically predictable aren't you, Nephrite? That is how a _real _warrior reacts. And all in stilettos, too." She giggled as he groaned louder before tilting her head to the side slightly. "You look ridiculous with short hair, by the way." She shrugged. "Oh well. Tootles, Nephie!"

She was almost to the front door, damning the man the whole way for ruining her search, when she was tackled from behind. She grunted in surprise as she hit the carpet, the much larger -and heavier- man sprawled out over her back. "What was that about a real warrior, Áine?" Nephrite hissed as he stood up, making to have a tight grip on her arms to pull her up as well. "A _real _warrior always anticipates a retaliation." He snorted. "_And _you turned your back on me. What an idiot."

She opened her mouth to tell him just what she thought of that but nothing came out but muffled shouts as he slapped a hand over it before she could begin. "Now, now. No vulgarity, Áine." He looked around the room curiously. "Well, let's go see what can I secure you in."

Ten minutes and a lot of struggling later, she was tied to a metal folding chair with items he had found scattered around in the apartment. Nephrite smirked, listening to her muffled cursing and watching how her glare got progressively deeper, before chuckling and turning around to find a phone to call the other generals with. "So much for tootles, huh Áine?"

* * *

Darien's lips twitched in amusement as he leaned against the doorframe of the guestroom, watching Rose sing something or other he could barely make out of her teddy bear. Honestly it didn't sound like either English or Japanese --and she was known to randomly break out in either, or both-- but he assumed it was just Rose-speak this time. "Well, you're up earlier than I expected."

Her head turned to him, a wide grin stretching across her face. "Dare-Dare! 'orning!"

He chuckled, walking over to ruffle her hair. "Good morning to you too, Rose." He eyed her curiously as she went back to singing to her bear. She probably hadn't been up long because she was still dressed in her Hello Kitty nightgown and under the green covers, but she was more awake then he'd expected her to be. Last night, she'd barely woken up as he'd helped her change into the pajamas and given her the bear, falling asleep seconds after he'd picked her up to take her to the guest room and mumbling "Mama" as he placed her down and tucked her in. Which brought him to his ulterior motive this morning: finding out where her mother was. "Did you have any dreams about your mommy last night?"

She gasped, looking up from the bear with an excited nod. "Yeah! Mama 'ay wuv Rose!" She frowned, her shoulders slumping. "Bot Mama s'ill 'ost."

He frowned at her last words at sat down on the edge of the bed beside her. "Why isn't she with you and your daddy? Is she in Japan?"

Her brown deepened and she bit her lip. "G'anpa 'ay so." She hugged her bear to her chest, suddenly looking forlorn and lost herself. "Miss Mama." She whispered as she looked up at Darien, her eyes misted over with tears. "Bot 'ay so make Dada 'ad."

His eyes softened. "That just means he misses her too, Rose. She has been gone for a long time, huh?"

She shrugged, picking at one of her bear's paws. "Saw Mama in 'une."

His eyes narrowed. June. She said it in English too, which more than likely meant she had last seen her mother when she and her father were still in America. They had become his neighbors in August --a whole two months later-- but what was this about a grandfather saying she was in Japan? Why would he know but not Neil? _'Unless he did something to her. Like sent her away.'_ He gazed at Rose, wincing as he saw her expression. He hadn't meant to upset her but there was still one question he had to ask. "Rose?" She looked up slowly, her green eyes still shining with tears. "Do you know your Mama's name?"

Her brow furrowed but she nodded. "V-v--" Her frown deepened. "Val--ah--ree."

"Valerie?" He asked carefully, receiving a nod in response. "Valerie Davis(1)?" Again she nodded even as she looked down at her bear and continued to pick at it in distraction. He grimaced before forcing a smile on his face. "Well, that's a pretty name isn't it?" She looked up with a sudden smile. "Do you know my favorite name though?" She shook her head slowly and his smile turned genuine as he reached over to tickle her. "Why, Rose of course!"

She instantly giggled, trying to wiggle out of his embrace. "Dare-Dare!"

He laughed in victory as the tears vanished in her eyes in favor of her amusement. He swung her up out of the bed, hoisting her around and making her laugh louder. "Now let's get you ready for the day? What did you and your daddy pack to wear? Any pretty ball gown?"

"Not party Dare-Dare!" She protested, giggling louder.

* * *

"Motoki?" The waitress sighed, making a vague gesture backwards. "Somewhere in the backroom. He was off Friday, and then today, but he suddenly bustled in here not long ago saying he'd forgotten something when he was here yesterday. You can go ahead and go back there too but… I don't know." She sighed, her purple dyed-hair shaking. "He's been acting real weird lately. All evasive. Anyways, good to hear you're better, Serena. We were all really worried about you. Now I've got to go back to work…"

"No problem. Thanks, Suki!" Serena grinned at the fellow teenager, waving as she walked away. As she turned around herself, the grin slipped into a frown. _'Evasive. Why in the world would Motoki be acting like that?'_ Her frown deepened. _'No. Darien can't be right. Motoki doesn't know anything about what the Senshi did. Let alone tried to help them…' _She sighed as she pushed open the bright yellow door of the backroom only to stop and blink as she saw it was empty. "Motoki? You in here?"

Almost immediately a muffled curse sounded from behind a tall pile of boxes and seconds later the said man raced out. "Serena!" He tittered, throwing a nervous glance behind him, before walking up to her. "Aren't you a sight for sore eyes!"

Her eyes narrowed suspiciously as she took a good look at her friend. His face was broken out into a overly large smile, his eyes kept shifting around nervously, and he was covered in a fine layer of dark grey dust from his hair to his shoes. "What were you doing?"

His eyes widened almost imperceptibly before he laughed. "Oh, you know me. Not much. J-just, uh, looking for something I forgot." He shrugged, carefully wiping off his clothes. "Someone really needs to dust back here. It's horrible."

She looked around innocently. "What'd you forget? Maybe I can help you find it."

"Oh, no need for that!" He said swiftly. As she sent him a wide-eyed look, he cleared his throat. "Y-you just got out of the hospital and all. No need to do anything but rest and focus on recovering."

She snorted. "Please. You're starting to sound like Darien." She began walking toward the boxes, looking around left and right to make it look like she was looking for the "lost" object, but Motoki suddenly stepped in front of her and effectively stopped her path.

"Speaking of Darien," He said with a gleeful smile, "Why did you two never tell me you were dating?"

She choked, backing away and putting her hands up defensively. "W-what do you mean? We--we aren't…"

He ignored her words as he pretended to wipe a tear from his eye. "Oh, woe is me. I had to hear such wonderful news from some gossiping nurses and not my own friends…"

"W-when did you hear that?" She winced. _'Another thing for Darien to hate Motoki for, I bet. Especially with the way he acted with Neil yesterday…'_

The arcade worker shrugged. "I went to visit you yesterday morning before work only to find out you were gone. All the nurses were eager to tell me all about how you'd defended your, and I quote, 'sweet boyfriend from that mean Doctor Rupert! I mean, really, he'd just been trying to make her laugh and smile! What is so bad about that!?' End quote."

She grimaced even as her friend chuckled. "There's nothing sweet about Darien. He was _annoying _me, not trying to make me laugh. Doctor Rupert just assumed things, anyways; we _aren't _dating."

"_Aw_," Motoki frowned, "And I was so hoping you two had finally saw the light and put aside your differences." He shook his head. "Oh, well. You can't really blame anyone at the hospital for believing you were dating. He had been there _all _week, practically waiting on your hand and foot." She snorted again but he suddenly looked over her head with a thoughtful frown. "Where is Darien, anyways? I didn't think you could go anywhere without your shadow." He laughed but stopped abruptly as he looked down to see her cringing and her eyes beginning to water. "Serena…? Are you okay?"

'_No, because I told Darien I didn't need him to be my shadow.' _She gave Motoki a watery smile. "Sure. Look… I, uh, I s-should go. I just wanted to tell you I was out of the hospital b-but you kinda already knew that… so, yeah…" She raced out without another word and it was only when she was at the park, stopping to take a rest on a bench, that she realized she had completely been distracted from finding out what the man had been doing behind the boxes. She groaned, slapping her forehead. "Just great."

* * *

It took twenty minutes for Jadeite and Zoisite to arrive to see the "surprise" Nephrite said he had for the two of them. And, as soon as Jadeite caught sight of said surprise in the middle of the living room, he burst out in laughter. "O-oh, god! Is that a _negligee _tying her feet together!? Terra, that's ironic! The _'goddess'_" He said with a mocking laugh, "of lust's daughter tied to a chair with underwear!"

Áine, her hands bound together and then fastened to the back of the chair by a bra, glared murderously. "Je--ffit!" Her glare deepened as she tried to move her feet but the negligee would only slid a few inches up and down from where both her ankles were bound together and fastened to one leg of the chair. "Bas-frrd!"

Nephrite laughed, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. "Yeah. I couldn't find anything else on short notice. You know how she is." He winced, rubbing his back. "And those heels."

Zoisite shook his head in dismay but still couldn't help his smile. "In any other situation, I would have claimed you had a dirty mind. Unfortunately I know first hand how much heels hurt." He studied the woman before turning to Nephrite with a frown. "Please tell me that isn't a dirty gym sock in her mouth."

"Nah, just a dishtowel." The man replied carelessly, "Kind of crusty with something or other and who knows how long it was in that dirty laundry hamper but, you know…" He laughed as the captive turned a seasick green. "I'm kidding! Man, you should have seen your face Áine!"

"_Afff--ol!"_

Jadeite continued to roar with laughter in the background; however, Zoisite frowned. "Even she doesn't deserve _that_, Neph."

Said man stopped chuckling, turning to his friend incredulously. "What do you mean she _doesn't _deserve that? She completely destroyed Val's bedroom! She's lucky _all _she got was a dishtowel in her mouth with the way I feel!"

"Well, it's time to find out why she's here, isn't it?" The not-so-blonde general retorted as he walked over to the captive and untied the dishtowel from around the back of her head, pulling it out of her mouth and dropping it onto the floor. "Well, Áine?"

She instantly spat on his shoes. "I hate you." She hissed, her eyes moving up to glare at the others, "I hate all of you."

Jadeite, finally in control of his amusement, looked between his fellow generals with raised eyebrows. "Did you two know that? Because I kinda already did."

Nephrite nodded as he crossed his arms. "Yeah, I figured."

Zoisite shrugged as he walked back to stand beside Nephrite, putting said man in the middle. "She never did seem to like Terrans in general." He paused, tilting his head slightly. "Of course, you're a Terran now too, aren't you Áine? You know, the whole reincarnation-thing?"

She stiffened, every single muscle in her body going tight, before forcing herself to relax. The stiffening didn't go unnoticed by any of the men, though, and Nephrite gazed at her in shock. "You… you never _died?_"

Her glare deepened but her answer was ambiguous. "I am a Senshi. My life is eternal so long as my duty exists."

While his friends stared at the woman considering, Jadeite laughed dryly. "Oh, really? Then please tell us why you tried to kill Serenity. Protecting her was your _duty_;at least it was your _real _one. I mean, do the ties of blood mean _nothing _to you?"

"During the Fall, I ordered one of Beryl's youmas to kill Caderyn. My own _brother_." She snarled, "Does that answer your question?"

"But she is --_was_-- your cousin!" Jadeite continued on in disbelief, "And the other Senshi for Terra's sake! They were you _sisters_-in-arms yet you _completely _betrayed them!"

She sighed, looking away to the floor. "If you are going to simply yell at me, I would appreciate being released from these bindings. This chair is appallingly uncomfortable."

Nephrite stepped up to the woman, a fierce glare etched into his face. "No. Not until you tell me what you were doing in Valkyrie's apartment; why you ransacked her bedroom the way you did. What were you looking for?"

She met his glare impassively. "Nothing that is of your concern."

"I beg to differ." He countered with a scowl, "She is my wife and as such everything about her is my concern."

She gazed at the man in shock before laughing. "Please. You? Mr. I'm-Afraid-of-Commitment-and-Marriage? You two never married." She rolled her eyes. "Do try better lies next time."

Nephrite smirked as he lifted his hand up, gesturing to a gold band. "I beg to differ." He passed, reaching into his back pocket for the black ring box. He popped it open, staring down at the diamond and emerald ring inside fondly, before showing it to Áine. "We have been married for a few years now. I made things right. I wasn't going to waste time with doubts. Not when I had a second chance."

The golden-haired woman's gaze swung between the rings disbelievingly. "B-but she was _sixteen _for goddess's sake! What did you do? Kidnap her and marry her when she was fourteen?"

He smiled but the action was bitter. "Wrong. She was _twenty_. Would have just been turning twenty-one shortly, as a matter of fact, if it hadn't been for her early death. She never got to complete her life and never will…" He sighed, looking at the wedding ring a little longer before snapping the box closed and putting it back in his pocket.

"What, staying married to you?" Áine snorted, a devious glint in her eyes. "That's not a life I'm sure Valkyrie would have wanted. After all, she must have been miserable if she ran away and pretended she was a teenager. Huh. I think I would have done the same thing, actually."

Nephrite vaguely heard the forgotten men behind him hiss in shock but he only saw the woman before him. His eyes narrowed into small, menacing slits as he slowly leaned down to whisper in her ear. "I know that you may not care about any children you would have had but I'm positive Val loved hers. She would never have abandoned _her _child."

"Y-you…" Áine choked on her words, but mostly the flood of emotions in her mind. She bowed her head in a desperate attempt to hide her eyes behind her bangs. "You knew I--I was…"

He eyed the woman for a moment, wondering if his long-held belief was wrong. "Yes." He said slowly, nodding once. "I did."

She looked up and all the men flinched at the sorrow in her gaze and the ashen tint her face had gained. "H--how?"

"I haven't been absolutely positive but I recognized the signs. I remember seeing women around and you forget that I had two sisters." He paused, debating with himself for a moment before deciding to press on. "Áine, did Kunzite know?"

She immediately cringed, her breath catching in her throat. "N-no." She gasped, the sound more like a sob than anything else. "There never was a chance to tell him be--before…"

He winced, looking behind him toward the other generals. Each was looking a little more than startled at the display Áine was putting on. None of them, except perhaps the missing Kunzite and the other girls, had ever seen the Leader of the Imperial Senshi so sorrowful, or even so emotional for that matter. Nephrite frowned, sharing a glance that spoke volumes with the other men before they slowly nodded. He turned around and hesitantly walked back the last few feet to Áine, holding his breath as he untied the bindings he had painstakingly placed on her. Immediately upon her full release, she brought her legs up to her chest and curled upon herself, her hair hiding her face from the world. All could see her body shaking but none could hear her uttering any sound.

As Nephrite took a few steps back, unsure, Zoisite came over to stand beside him. "Neph, what's going on?"

The general ran a hand through his hair, looking at his comrades as Jadeite came to stand Zoisite. "She… she was pregnant. In the Silver Millennium." They all flinched again as Áine released a muffled sob, her shoulders shaking more violently. Apparently the whispered words hadn't been quiet enough.

* * *

'_Valerie Davis. That's not a name that would easily blend into Japanese society. Neil has been searching for his wife since he arrived, I'm positive of it now, yet based on the fact that she isn't with her family, she must be using an alias. It's the only way to remain hidden for so long. And if Rose's grandfather --whom I'm assuming is Valerie's father-- knew she was in Japan but not Neil or Rose, then that means he more than likely has something to do with it. But, then, why _wouldn't _she contact her husband and daughter? And why the alias? I doubt she'd run away because then her father shouldn't have known she was in Japan. No one should have. Unless… unless she _agreed _to be sent away. Even then though, I can't imagine she simply left her family without a word. She had to have known how much they would worry and look for her. How much they loved her and would miss her…'_

"Dare-Dare?"

Darien looked up from the morning paper he wasn't reading, his eyebrows raised questioningly at the toddler sitting on his right side. Rose, finally bathed and dressed for the new day --today's variety a pink unicorn shirt and bright green pants--, was frowning at him. "Yes, Rosie-Posie?"

Her frown deepened and he suddenly realized it was her turn for questions that morning. "Why 'taru no talk?"

His brow furrowed as he placed his paper down all the way. How exactly could he explain Hotaru's condition to a not-even two year old when some adults couldn't even understand it? "Hotaru…" He began slowly, "is sick. Her and her mommy were in an accident and she saw it. She-- something happened inside," He tapped one of his temples, "that makes her afraid of things. I …think she doesn't want to talk because she's afraid that if she does, something bad will happen to that person. Like what happened to her mommy."

The girl tilted her head and he was afraid she was going to say she didn't understand; that truly was the easiest he could explain it to a little kid. "'taru…" She said hesitantly, "Not wuv. Afwaid."

Darien blinked before nodding slowly. "Yes. She's afraid that if she lets someone become friends with her, they'll be really hurt like her mommy. I guess she thinks that if she's all alone, she wouldn't have to be hurt when someone is gone." He grimaced. _'A little too close to home there. Took me forever to learn that life doesn't work that way. I'm still learning it, actually.'_

The girl nodded before shakily picking up her spoon. "O'ay." She promptly shoved the spoonful of toddler O-ring cereal into her mouth.

He eyed her oddly. "That's it? You understand why she doesn't talk?"

She shrugged. "'taru afwaid. O'ay. No 'taru talk."

He chuckled, shaking his head in wonder. "Rose, I think you might be a little too attune to emotions at your age. You understand them better than I do."

She looked up with a wide grin. "Dada 'ay Rose is a--" She frowned suddenly. "em--"

"Empathetic?" He suggested only for her to shake her head in the negative.

"Rose is-is a," She tried again, her face scrunching up in thought, "em-path. Yeah!" She giggled.

"Empath?" He repeated humorously, "Don't tell me one of the psychic variety."

She continued to giggle, clapping her hands. "Uh-huh! Rose s-si--kik." Her brow furrowed but the pronunciation must have been acceptable because she giggled again and went back to her breakfast without another word.

'_O…kay.'_ Darien blinked a few times, running a hand through his hair when he couldn't come up with a response. _'What do you say when a toddler tells you she's psychic anyways?'_ But, the strangest thing was that he couldn't bring himself to _not _believe her words. Because, if he could produce flowers out of thin air-- and had since he was a little kid-- what's to say that Rose couldn't sense others' emotions psychically?

* * *

'_Ahh!'_ Serena released a sigh of aggravation as she closed her eyes and leaned her head against the park bench she was still sitting on. _'Motoki wasn't doing any suspicious. I know it. He--he was just being Motoki.'_ She grimaced. _'That's not exactly a good sign, is it?'_

It was true; the more she thought about it, she really didn't know a _whole _lot about Motoki. He worked at the arcade part-time and went to Tokyo University the other. He'd met Darien about a year ago… at something or other. _'I think Darien's took a fieldtrip to the university and Motoki was the guide or something but I can't remember.' _He mentioned having a mother but not any other family; she'd never seen the woman though, not even in a picture, and the way he talked made it sound like she didn't live anywhere close. _'But it's _Motoki_! He's like my brother, practically! He'd never side with the Senshi because he doesn't even know what they did! Or even who they are in civilian lives!'_ She bit her lip as a thought occurred to her. _'H--he probably just lied to protect Minako because they're friends. Despite how she's so secretive and not even the Senshi really know her. …Great.'_ She tilted her head forward, opening her eyes to see she was in front of the re-opened seasonal, outdoor ice-skating rink. She smiled as she watched a family of four --two twin daughters looking to be around seven or so-- near the edge of the rink closest to her. The sisters clasped their hands together, spinning in a circle as their parents cheered them on not even a few feet away. _'I bet Hotaru would like it here.'_

She smiled as her eyes went to the other skaters; families, couples, and friends, they had all come out to experience the clear, winter-like day. She shivered lightly, burrowing her hands into her coat, as a cold path of air trailed down her back. Even that didn't stop her giggle as her eyes returned to the twin sisters to see them fall onto the ground, dizzy but laughing merrily. _'That is what I'll do.'_ She thought with a sudden, firm nod, _'I'll treat Motoki the same as I ever have. I'll just be more aware of him and his actions for Darien's sake. Then, if it turns out to be nothing, I'll apologize until I'm blue in my face and blame Darien. Yeah.'_ She smiled, some of the tension running out of her shoulders. _'For right now, I'll just focus on Darien getting Hotaru's guardianship so we can all come out here and have a nice day.'_

The blonde shivered again as another cold gust of air ran up her spine. _'Wait a second.' _Her brow furrowed. _'Someone… someone is watching me. Glaring at me.'_ She ran her eyes over everyone at the rink but they were all absorbed in their actions and laughter. She stood up slowly, glancing this way and that before turning around and freezing as she saw someone dash through the cover of trees. _'What in the world?'_

She debated with herself for less than a minute before walking over to the tree line carefully, her shoulders tense in nervousness this time. She poked her head in between two trees, looking left and right but not stepping all the way in herself. She knew better than to do that now; not when she didn't have anyway to protect herself if it came down to it. Her brow furrowed as she spotted a figure awhile away, female by the looks of it. _'Th-that's not one of the Senshi is it? Like Rei?'_ She bit her lip. _'I--I promised Ami I wouldn't willingly seek any of the Senshi but… if-if I follow them and they're not Senshi technically I'm not breaking my promise. A-and if it is… I can just walk away.'_ She nodded hesitantly, stepping back onto the cement path and following the person that way. _'I'm sorry Ami.'_

* * *

"_Ugh_." Jadeite groaned as he adjusted the icepack on his chin, wincing as it touched the place where Áine had full out kicked him while he'd been holding her. "Where the hell did she learn that? Valkyrie? She _completely _kicked over her head and hit me in the chin. And I was behind her so it was a blind shot!"

"Be lucky it wasn't your nose or an eye, then." Zoisite winced as he gingerly sat down on the couch, clutching his ribs, before he chuckled slowly. "But, actually, I think she might have learned it from Albreda. That sounds vaguely familiar and while it might not seem like it, that girl has some moves on her that'd surprise you."

The faux-redhead gazed at the man in shock before laughing. "It's always the quiet ones, isn't it?" He shook his head wryly. "I just can't imagine sweet little Albreda doing that to anyone." He looked over at the silent general. "How're you doing, Neph? That chain must have burned you pretty good. It sprayed sparks everywhere."

_**Áine spun around to the balcony only to see Nephrite standing there in a defensive position, waiting for her next move. She smirked, snapping out her heart-link chain and striking it against the carpet. He eyed the weapon, well aware of the fact he had no powers anymore and had to rely on physical strength.**_

_**She made the first move, coming forward to land a punch to his abdomen. He hissed at the impact but didn't give her a chance to retreat before seizing a hold of her wrists and squeezing them, trying to make her release her weapon. She snorted at his attempt and willingly dropped the glowing chain, letting it disappear into nothingness as it fell. Seeing the larger man still had a good grip on her wrists, she used it as leverage to heave him over her shoulder. She grunted under his weight but quickly threw him onto the ground before her in a loud crash. She smirked as he shook his head in a daze before slowly standing.**_

_**"Like that? Valkyrie was the one to teach me how to disperse the weight properly, actually." The smirk dropped off her face as she reached out to grab him around his neck. He wheezed but placed his large hand around her own slimmer neck, squeezing it warningly. "Do it." She whispered. "You would be doing everyone around you **_and _**me a favor." He gaped at her in shock, his grip loosening slightly, as he wondered just how serious she was. She frowned after a moment, her eyes gleaming with what looked like tears. "Coward," She hissed, "Damn coward."**_

"_**Áine…" He didn't get to say anymore because, before he could blink, he was facing his fellow generals and a burning sensation was crossing his neck. He looked down only to wince as a spray of golden light blocked his vision; her chain was threatening to burn him if he so much as moved a centimeter.**_

"Neph?" Jadeite frowned, sharing a look with Zoisite when the man didn't answer and just continued to stare out the balcony door Áine had fled from. "You okay?"

The North American general nodded as he came out of his thoughts. He lifted his neck slightly as he walked over to his comrades and leaned against the chair directing across from Jadeite. "Yeah. No damage. I wasn't burned, though it was kind hard when her knee was digging into me like that." He groaned as he rubbed his back. "Right where she'd pushed me with those heels too."

"Whoever gave her those should die." Jadeite grumbled darkly, "That or face them themselves."

"I agree." Zoisite muttered as he continued to hold his ribs, "Someone should build her up also. Boney woman. She could have broken a rib with those elbows of hers." He scowled at the memory of the purplish-red color his side was.

_**Nephrite watched Jadeite finger a knife at his side, his eyes darting around for a good vantage strike on the woman behind him. Zoisite was kneeling with one knee on the ground, coughing while one of his hands was against his side by his ribs. "Never," He focused on Áine as she hissed dangerously in his ear, "never say that I don't care about any children I would have had."**_

_**The man's eyes grew wide at the realization his belief **_**had **_**been wrong the entire time. Áine hadn't willingly done anyway with her and Kunzite's child; something had happened. "Áine…" He grunted as he felt a knee digging into the small of his back. **_'Damn boney woman.' _**"I'm sorry. So sorry. I didn't--"**_

_**"You have **_**no **_**right to speak of anything that you do not know about." She interrupted, pressing her knee deeper into the man's back and faintly hearing something pop under the pressure. "No right because you know **_**nothing**_**."**_

"Guys," Nephrite slowly looked up at his friends. "we might have a problem. Áine… I don't think she ever betrayed anyone or, at least, she didn't have a choice in it."

* * *

Twenty minutes into following the woman, ten minutes blindly because she'd lost sight of her, Serena slowly let her guard down. _'Well, whoever she was, I guess she's gone now.' _She spun around to go back the way she came only to release a startled gasp as she saw the woman slowly walking down the path toward _her_._ 'How--how did she get behind me?' _The blonde squinted her eyes. The woman had dark black hair and wearing a yellow and black sundress. _'Is that Rei? No. Rei's hair isn't wavy and it only goes to her waist. This woman's hair goes to her calves easily. And---and she looks older than Rei too.'_

As the woman stopped not even six feet away, Serena continued to study her. Upon closer look, the woman's hair _was _black but more like an odd mixture of purple, gray, and black and her hairstyle --the blonde gaped. _'Odangoes… She has odangoes in her hair too!'_ But, unlike her own hairstyle, this woman had _two _fist sized balls side-by-side on either side of her hair while the rest of it trailed down her back in waves. Dangling from her ears were a pair of golden crescent moon and pearl earrings, not unlike Sailor Moon's had been. Around her neck hung a matching pearl-beaded necklace that reached her waist, at the end another golden crescent moon glistened proudly.

At second glance, the simple sundress was revealed to be a finely-made silk or satin golden dress that reached mid-thigh and sparkled in the sunlight; the black part of it was actually a thick, black organdy skirt underneath the silken material. The organdy was almost straight until it went down to the woman's knees and flared out on the sides until it reached her ankles. In the middle, a slit showed her legs and the beautiful lace-up black boots that reached mid-calf and had golden crescent moons etched into their outward seems. Serena's eyes slid up the woman's form, seeing where the dress's thin straps and the low neckline met, the same black organdy material was crumpled into the shape of a flower on either side. _'She's so pretty.'_ She gasped, taking a step back as her eyes continued to slid up and she saw the stunning --and frightfully familiar-- crescent moon insignia that was imprinted upon the woman's brow. _'S-she… she's the--!'_

"P-princess Serenity?" Serena whispered in awe, "Is--is that _you_?" _'She--she has to be.'_ She thought wildly, _'What else _could _she be with all those crescent moons?'_

The woman sniffed, crossing her arms. "You truly are as idiotic as I always believed you to be if you mistake me for Her Highness." She smirked. "Don't tell me you can't even remember me, Serena? We'd been together for _so _long."

The girl's brow furrowed at the voice's familiarity before her eyes widened in shock. "L--_Luna_?"

She smiled cheerfully, the action a sharp contrast to her glaring blue eyes. "Ding dong! A prize for the little girl!" She nodded. "Correct Serena. Her _Esteemed _Highness corrected my transformation phase so I would not need to pretend to be a cat anymore."

"Y-you never said you were _pretending _to be a cat." Serena took a nervous step away as Luna's glare deepened dangerously.

"And you never told us you were a traitor!" The dark-haired woman practically screamed, "You tricked me into believing there was a Sailor Moon!" She suddenly took a deep breath, shaking her head, before pinning her eyes to the startled girl. "I should only be glad that Her Highness came to me when she did." She held out one upturned palm and a familiar broach floated down gently from seemingly nowhere. "I used _your _broach. Used _your _wicked powers to try to become human and almost died as a result!"

"Y-you almost…" The blonde stuttered, ducking with a gasp as the broach suddenly sailed toward her head. _'I--I. Don't tell me Darien was _right_! T-that I would have died if I'd transformed anymore. N-no… Luna gave me that broach! And my powers!'_

"Yes, Serena. I almost died." Luna clarified with a simple nod, almost-calm again after her actions. "And you what I'm going to do about it?" The blonde shook her head, fear creeping into her spine as Luna smirked and summoned a large violet sphere that looked like electricity in that same hand the broach had floated into. "I'm going to get my revenge."

Serena's eyes grew wide, a scream bursting from her throat as humanoid-cat threw the crackling ball at her.

* * *

Darien's head suddenly snapped up, looking toward his open window. _'What was that? A youma?'_ He winced as he rubbed the area over his heart, feeling it thundering much faster than it should be.

"Dare-Dare 'or'ed." Rose stated as she ran a red coloring crayon around her coloring book. When the man didn't say anything, her brow furrowed as she looked up at him. "Dare-Dare?"

"It's… it's nothing." He said slowly but he still got up from where he was sitting on the couch behind the child and went over to the window. His eyes narrowed as he saw a flock of birds take off from the middle of the park, a sign of something going wrong. He clinched his fists as he looked behind him to see his current guest had gone back to scribbling with her crayons. _'Damn Neil. Where are you?'_ He looked back at the window, desperately trying to convince himself it was just a youma and not Serena's familiar scream he'd heard.

* * *

"Wait, wait." Jadeite said, touching his forehead and leaning further against the lazy-boy he was setting in, "Start at the beginning before you continue any further into this thought pattern of yours. I'm starting to get a headache."

"Yeah. Why do you suspect Áine had been pregnant, Neph?" Zoisite asked from the couch.

"I think it's more than a _suspicion_." Nephrite commented dryly, still leaning against the other lazy-boy, "Did you two not see the way she reacted?"

"Okay. Point. _When _did you know she was pregnant, then?" The European general amended, wincing slightly as he leaned back.

Nephrite ran a hand through his hair, frowning in distaste at its shortness. "Hmm. It wasn't too long before Serenity married Endymion. Kunzite had just left a few days before to find out something or other on Sol when Áine suddenly showed up out of the blue."

"When she slapped Serenity?" Jadeite asked, wincing at the memory, "Boy was Endymion mad when she did. Her nails almost left a scar if I recall correctly(2)."

"That was the day." Nephrite confirmed, "She'd been surprised with herself slapping Serenity, I'm positive of it, so while she fled and you guys were trying to cool Endymion down, I'd followed her. Once I finally did find her in the gardens, she was sick." He shook his head, "I'd thought it was because she was disgusted with herself but… I can remember how, when I'd seen her earlier, she'd looked so _tired_. I don't think she came to get into an argument that day. I think she came looking for Kunzite…"

"To tell him he was going to be a father." Zoisite finished with a frown, "But that doesn't make any sense. Are you sure it was Kunzite's child? We hadn't seen her since we left the delegation and we know she and Kunz hadn't--" He cleared his throat, laughing. "You guys teased him enough about it, so I know the two didn't."

Nephrite shook his head. "I'm positive it was his. And you know how Kunz is, even if they had had sex before we left, he wouldn't have told us no matter how much we teased. But," His brow furrowed. "now that you brought it up, the timing would have been off, wouldn't it? Morning sickness is in the early months of pregnancy." He cringed at the reminder of Val's own morning sickness. "Once we came back from the delegation, Kunzite and Endymion almost immediately left to take care of business in Arabia. They were gone for nearly three months before Endymion came riding up to the castle with Serenity. It was another month and a half before Áine showed up; she should have been pregnant enough for _all _of us to notice by then."

"Kunzite wasn't with them when they returned, though." Zoisite pointed out, "Once they had come across Serenity and learned she had run away, we know Endymion instantly sent Kunz to the Moon to learn what was happening and how her disappearance was being explained. Bellona found him first though, having been the one to tell Serenity where to go and knowing someone would come to Lunaria as a result."

Jadeite's smile was bittersweet as he thought about his firebird; sweet because she was, well, his firebird and bitter because she was comatose. "And she demanded that he bring her to Terra because the information she had was only for her Princess's ears. He did bring her too, but she later said that he had initially refused, being suspicious and claiming he had no idea where Crown-Princess Serenity was and did not appreciate Terra being blamed for her _'kidnapping'_ and-or harboring her _'kidnapper'_." He rolled his eyes, putting amused air quotes around the words. "But, then, he suddenly sought her out a week later and brought her to Terra. There's no telling what happened in that week. He could have easily ran into Áine." His eyes widened as something occurred to him. "Y-you don't think he _told _Áine Serenity was with us, do you?"

Nephrite and Zoisite shared a look with one another before the later shook his head vehemently. "No. I know Kunz, we all do. It would have gone against everything he was to tell _anyone _of Serenity's presence amongst us --including to Áine. He always put Endymion's concerns and wellbeing before his and Endymion's concern was Serenity. It was that simple. Kunzite never would have compromised who we _all _knew would be our future-Queen's whereabouts."

"It's true." Nephrite said with a shrug, "Kunzite was completely focused on seeing to it that Serenity remained hidden. He _did _go to Lunaria _more _than once to ensure no one suspected she was on Terra, no doubt spreading around a few lies if he had to, and I think if he just so happened to come across Áine a handful of times…"

"_Then _there comes the baby!" Jadeite laughed. "All in agreement say 'I'!"

"I." Came the almost simultaneous response from the other two. They all laughed before looking at one another, sobering up almost instantly. "But, this changes everything, doesn't it?" Zoisite said, glancing between the others, "Áine had been pregnant but…" He stopped, unable to say.

Nephrite had no such qualms. "But the next time we saw her, she was trying to drown Serenity in a bath and she admitted to ordering Cadeyrn's death also." He sighed. "She hadn't been anymore pregnant the next time I'd seen her, either. Which she _should _have been. I'd thought I'd been mistaken or she'd done away with the child…"

"Yet we all saw how she reacted earlier. It's pretty clear that she _was _pregnant but had had no intention of doing away with it." Zoisite commented, "And if she'd come to Terra to tell Kunzite but the next thing we know she's evil…"

"Something happened between those two points." Jadeite finished for him, frowning down on the ground, "And I'm willing to bet it was someone killing her unborn child." He looked up. "But who?"

"I think we all know _exactly _who." Nephrite growled, "And she's still blackmailing her with something."

"Like Kunzite not knowing." Zoisite supplied with a wise nod, "And if Áine truly _hasn't _died, that's ten thousand years of brainwashing and being convinced that she _allowed _her child to be killed. That everything was her fault and Kunzite and everyone else would hate her the rest of her life."

Jadeite hissed throwing his teeth, punching both sides of the chair he was sitting in. "Damn it. How could we not have seen this?"

"The same way I didn't see my own wife living five floors down from me for months." Nephrite answered somberly as he looked around the room. The other generals flinched and Jadeite carefully extracted his hands from the chair before he could do any damage to it.

* * *

Serena groaned as she crashed into the ground. _'Whoever said grass doesn't hurt is a liar.' _She winced as she looked down at her leg. She'd jumped to avoid Luna's first sphere but while she dashed into the trees, another had hit her and now from her knee to ankle, her leg was a molding green-looking color. _'I do _not _want to think of how I'm going to explain that to my mom either. I'm never going to be allowed to go to school now.'_ She carefully climbed to her feet, cringing as the said leg was jarred as she stood up.

"Serena? Oh, Serena, where are you?" Luna cooed, not far away by the sound of it either. The blonde winced as she did an odd mixture of a hobble and a not-so-fast run, moving into a pattern of trees and hoping to become lost. Maybe if she didn't know where she was, Luna wouldn't either. _'Great thought, Serena.'_ She rolled her eyes. _'I should have just stayed on the path. More people equals less likely Luna would be able to kill me. But _no_.'_

"What's wrong, Serena? Don't you want to play with me?"

Serena looked over her shoulder, fearful that Luna was right behind her by how loud the voice was, but she could only see trees upon trees. _'I must be in the middle of that little forest. Which means there should be a bridge and pathway not far away…'_ She turned around only to scream as she saw Luna jumping toward her from a tree with a terrifying Cheshire-Cat grin on her face.

She cried out in pain as her let made impact with a root of a tree, the woman having landed on top of her and causing her to tumble down. "Aw, little Serena is scared." She looked up, crying and shaking in pure fear as she met Luna's natural red eyes glowing sinisterly as she hovered over her. The woman grinned wider, a pleased-sounding purr lulling from her throat. "Poor little Serena. Do you want me to make it better for you?" The girl took a shaky breath as she looked down to see Luna's fingernails were still cat-like and they were digging to the fluffy material of her jacket above breasts. "Well, Serena?"

The girl cried out as those claw-like fingernails abruptly sunk themselves into her upper arms, an instant scarlet color bleeding into the white jacket through its new tears. "N-no… L-Luna…" She finally stuttered, looking up at her former guardian with pleading, watery eyes. "Please d-don't."

"Please don't stop?" The woman smirked. "Why, it would be my pleasure Serena. _Anything _for you." Her smirk turned menacing as one of her hands inched up to the girl's neck and she ran one of her sharp fingernails against the jugular. Her eyes light up in delight as she felt Serena swallow thickly. "Anything for the woman who betrayed me and my trust. Anything for the woman that no doubt works for the Dark Kingdom. Anything for the woman who destroyed everyone's lives so long ago." She squeezed the girl's neck, letting all her fingernails sink into the soft flesh. Her smiled turned gleeful as Serena's eyes widened and her face began turning a pinkish-red color. "Anything, my dear."

"L--Lu…" Serena choked, frantically scratching at the hand but it only tightened its hold on her. Her breathing became labored as she desperately tried to buck or kick the woman off her. Luna only smiled, letting more of her weight drop on the girl's waist she was sitting on and tightening her hold on her neck.

"Now, now." She purred, "Be a good girl for Lady Luna. It will all be over very soon."

The blonde winced as the pressure tightened, feeling something sliding down her neck and knowing it was her blood creating rivers. Her fingernails were still digging at Luna's hands but they didn't seem to even faze the woman. Her eyes fluttered and as she fought to open them again, she could see black dots swimming in her vision. _'Lu…na.'_ She felt her hands fall against her chest listlessly, her half-lidded eyes taking in Luna's glowing red eyes. _'Like… Rei.'_ She wheezed as her body fought the lack of oxygen and suddenly became of the cold chill seeping into her body.

"Almost there." Luna whispered into Serena's ear, that same pleased purr lulling out of her throat vibrating against the blonde's cheek. "Don't worry. You wouldn't be alone forever. Wait until I get a hold of Tuxedo Mask and this husband of yours. They will join you _very _soon indeed. They won't survive long once I get a hold of them. That's a promise."

'_Dar…ien.'_ The girl's eyes flew upon in shock but she couldn't see anything except for blurs of color. She fought to keep them open but she could feel the last of her strength leaving her body and they fell closed seconds later as she went limp. _'En…dy.'_

* * *

Darien's eyes snapped open as he lifted his head and turned to the park. He hurriedly stood up from the couch, the hands his mouth and chin had been resting in unclasping as they fell. _'Serenity…'_

Rose watched the man as he walked back to the window yet again. He'd been doing that a lot lately. "Dare-Dare?" Her eyes filled with confused and terrified tears as his gaze snapped to her but instead of nice blue eyes he had gold ones. "Wha--?" She didn't say anymore before someone knocked on the door.

"Hey you two! Sorry for being so late! Something really important came up!"

"Dada!" She screamed, rushing up and racing to the door. It took a few jumps for her to be able to reach the doorknob but once she did, she eagerly turned it.

Nephrite stood alone on the other side and grinned widely as he saw his daughter. "Hey, sweetie!"

Rose raced into his arms as he bent down to pick her up. "Dada!" She giggled as he kissed her head and hugged her to him. "Miss Dada!"

"I missed you too, Rose." He smiled down at the girl as he stood up with her. He turned to Darien only for his brow to furrow as he saw the man looking out the window toward the park, his hands clinched at his sides. His whole posture radiated anxiety and concern. "Darien? What's wrong?"

The man looked back, his eyes taking in the sight of the now-startled general. "Nephrite. Finally." He took his head, rushing past the man and out the door. "I'm sorry. I have to go."

Nephrite's jaw dropped even as he rushed out the doorway, seeing his king disappearing down an elevator. _'H-he didn't call me… His eyes…'_ He looked down at his daughter only to see her staring after the man too. "Dare-Dare eye 'old." She said suddenly as she looked up at him, "'umpin wrong."

He nodded slowly, wide-eyed as he looked back at the elevator doors. "Something is _very _wrong."

* * *

"I really don't see why we couldn't stay and see Rose." Jadeite complained as he walked out of the apartment complex, Zoisite at his left side. "I haven't seen her in, like, her whole life!"

"And considering how old she is, it hasn't been _that _long ago." Zoisite replied dryly before sighing, "I don't blame you though. I would have liked to see her too. It just wouldn't have been right. Nephrite wants to show her Valkyrie's apartment and we don't need to be there interfering in such a personal matter."

"Fine." The man grumbled as he shoved his hands into his jean pockets, "Let's go back to before Neph called, then. You said Cadeyrn is doing his report?"

"Yeah. Apparently _Commander_," A faint tick started in the man's eyebrow and Jadeite had to suppress a smile at the sight of it. "finally told him that he was coming here and now Cadeyrn's rushing around everywhere trying to summarize what's been happening since he was relocated to Japan. He called this morning to ask if he should clean out the weapons and do inventory while he was at it."

"What'd you tell him?"

"Yes." Zoisite answered without hesitance, glancing at his comrade from the corner of his eye, "Something big is going to happen. This revelation about Áine only solidifies it because now that we know her secret, she might become desperate to _keep _it. You know as well as I do that it was a secret she meant to take to her grave. We will need _everything _we can get our hands, otherwise it won't be pretty for us. Or anyone else."

Jadeite nodded. "It's already not so pretty." He sighed, rubbing a hand over his face. "We need to find Kunzite, don't we? Before this big thing happens. He--he needs to know anyways. It's only fair to tell him that Áine did everything because someone killed their unborn child."

"I agree."

"So… I don't need to do a report do I?" The Far-Eastern general asked after a minute, rubbing the back of his head, "I don't really think it's necessary."

"And I don't think Commander deserves it."

Jadeite snorted, laughing until someone abruptly rushed into his side and made him crash into his companion. As soon as both men tumbled to the ground, Zoisite groaned and pushed at Jadeite's shoulders. "Get the hell off me. You're too heavy."

The redhead jumped to his feet, smirking down at his friend. "Don't worry Zoi, your precious Albreda isn't here to see you looking so undignified." His smirk widened as the man growled before he looked up at the man who'd run into him as he got further away. "Hey, asshole! Be careful next time!"

Both men's jaws dropped as the assailant stopped and looked over his shoulder, his golden eyes filled with mirth. "Always so rude, Jed. Remarkably I am glad you have not changed. I shutter to think of you being polite. Do you not agree, Zoi?" The smile slipped off his face as a scream echoed throughout the streets, and with a swear he continued in his trek down the sidewalk --noticeably faster this time.

"Did he just…?" Jadeite's looked over to his comrade, seeing the same dumbfounded look he was wearing.

"Yeah. He did."

"And the gold…"

"Yeah. That was real too." Zoisite said with a disbelieving nod. "I hadn't _really _believed Cadeyrn when he told us his eyes did that at the arcade."

"Yeah. Me neither." Jadeite winced, glancing at his companion out of the corner of his eye. "You don't think that scream was…?"

Zoisite nodded. "With the way he's running? Yeah. Definitely Serenity."

Both men looked at each other before racing after their sovereign. "Endymion! Wait for us!"

* * *

'_I really need to stop doing that.'_ Serena thought, her breaths coming in gasps as she clutched her frantically beating heart. She winced as she clutched at her neck; it felt raw from her scream. She closed her eyes, leaning back down and trying to control her breathing. _'What just happened? Another nightmare?'_

"Serena!" Her eyes snapped open and seconds later her sight of the sky was blocked by a familiar face and pair of ocean-blue eyes. _'Darien_._'_ "Are you okay? I heard you screaming all the way from my apartment." His eyes seemed to dart everywhere, darkened with a wealth of emotions as they snapped back up to her when she didn't answer right away. "Serena?"

Her brow furrowed but she still nodded slowly. "I--I think so. I…. feel fine." Unexpectedly she felt tears rushing into her eyes. "I'm alive. I'm _alive_." She whispered almost wondrously, taking a shaky breath as she reached out and touched his face.

He immediately frowned in concern as the hand on his cheek began shaking. "Of course you are but, what's wrong? Why are you lying on a bench out here?" His eyes narrowed in on her tears. "And why are you crying? _Did _something happen to you?"

She blinked in confusion, the tears beginning to dry up as quickly as they appeared, and removed her hand from his cheek only to touch one of hers instead. "I'm …crying?" She took a shaky breath and looked around her surroundings, seeing she was still at the bench near the ice-skating rink. She swung her legs over the side and began to sit up hesitantly but still felt her head beginning to spin at the slow motions.

Darien, having quickly leaned away to avoid being hit by a flailing limp, winced as she groaned in pain. "Be careful." He warned as he sat next to her and pulled her over to rest against his side. "Serena… what happened?" He asked cautiously as a few moments.

"Nightmare, I think." She whispered into his chest, closing her eyes and not carrying how she slumped against him or how she was completely disturbing his personal space. _'Feels… nice. Safe. Why do I feel so cold…?'_ She grimaced. _'That's what I get for falling asleep on a park bench, I guess.'_

He shook his head in belief. "Then why didn't someone wake you up _before_ I came? I heard you scream the first time a while ago." His jaw tightened. "I couldn't come see what was happening because Rose was still with me, though. I didn't want to put her in danger if something was happening but--"

Her eyes snapped up to his. "A… while ago?" Her brow furrowed as an image flashed through her mind. A woman. Her hand, a familiar broach. _**"I used your broach. Used your wicked powers to try to become human and almost died as a result!"**_ She gasped, her eyes widening. "Luna. A human Luna."

His eyes narrowed suspiciously. "What about Luna?"

She shook her head slowly. "My nightmare… it was about Luna. I--I felt someone glaring at me from this bench and followed them. It was Luna and she told me she used my transformation broach to try to become human and almost died."

"Serena," He said carefully after a silent minute or two, "Are--are you _sure _it was a dream? I mean, someone --_anyone_-- should have woken you up before I found you. You were terrified. For someone to have just let you continue screaming like that, especially with the rink so close… It would have been impossible."

"I--I…" She shook her head again. "No. It _had _to be a dream. I'm not hurt. She--she'd thrown this purple sphere thing at me but my legs fine." She glanced back at him, seeing the look on his face. "You… you really do think it was real. That she tried to kill me."

His gaze darkened. "The next time you see Ami, you are going to ask her to describe a human Luna. If she can confirm what you saw in your dream, then I have no doubts it was real. Neither of us has ever seen Luna _as _a human, so it would _have _to be real." He looked down, his hand clinching. "She told you that she used your broach, no doubt accessing your powers, and almost died. If…if Ami's description matches, then that means I was _right_. That, if you'd continued to transform, _you _would have _died_. It would mean that your power, that broach of yours, has been what was poisoning you all along. It attacked Luna thinking she was its master --_you_."

Serena shook her head frantically. "N-no. It couldn't have been real. I--I was running from her and then--- and then she jumped out of a tree on me." She shivered involuntarily at the memory. She'd always thought the Cheshire cat from Alice in Wonderland was scary and Luna had that _exact _same creepy grin when she'd jumped down. "And I---" She frowned, "…I don't remember anymore. That's the last thing I can recall."

His eyed her curiously as one of her hands went up to her neck and she winced as she rubbed it. "What's wrong with your neck?"

She blinked, bringing the appendage up to her face and gazing at it as if it didn't belong to her. "Nothing that I know of." She whispered, looking at him with wide eyes, "I don't even remember moving my hand though."

He frowned as he leaned down to look at the area. His own hands slid over her neck slowly, a few gold sparks lighting up by themselves. "It's a little red." His eyes darted around before his frown deepened and he reached over to touch something just under her chin. "There's a faint… it looks like a claw mark, honestly." His gaze narrowed suddenly and he positioned his hand around her neck, but his eyes quickly flared back open. "Right where a thumb would be if…"

_**The blonde winced as the pressure tightened, feeling something sliding down her neck and knowing it was her blood creating rivers. Her fingernails were still digging at Luna's hands but they didn't seem to even faze the woman. Her eyes fluttered and as she fought to open them again, she could see black dots swimming in her vision. **__'Lu…na.' __**She felt her hands fall against her chest listlessly, her half-lidded eyes taking in Luna's glowing red eyes. **__'Like… Rei.' __**She wheezed as her body fought the lack of oxygen and suddenly became of the cold chill seeping into her body.**_

"She--oh, no."

Darien's eyes snapped up to Serena, taking in the ashen tint of her face and her wide-unseeing eyes. "What is it?" He asked urgently as he grabbed both sides of her face in an attempt to gain her attention. She didn't even bat an eyelash. "Serena, listen to me. Did--did Luna try to suffocate you?"

"_**Almost there." Luna whispered into Serena's ear, that same pleased purr lulling out of her throat vibrating against the blonde's cheek. "Don't worry. You wouldn't be alone forever. Wait until I get a hold of Tuxedo Mask and this husband of yours. They will join you very soon indeed. They won't survive long once I get a hold of them. That's a promise."**_

His eyes widened in surprise and alarm as Serena suddenly gasped, her eyes rolling back into her head, and proceeded to faint into his arms.

* * *

Jadeite squinted as he watched the duo on the bench. "Can you hear them? All I can hear are stupid birds."

"_Shh!_" His companion, squatted right beside him where the two were lurking in a bush not far from their sovereigns, pushed him in the shoulder. "Shut up!"

The Far-Eastern General frowned. "I'll take that as a yes then. You don't have to be so rude about it, though." He grumbled, plopping down on his butt and folding his arms. "I think if Neph hadn't confirmed he had seen and spoken with Serenity last night, I might have passed out from shock. I'm still reeling from Endymion's gold eyes as it is. Hey, why do you think she's wearing the Lunarian hairstyle?"

"I said shut up!" Zoisite hissed, throwing a glare at the man. "Do you want _them _to hear _you_ and find us? How'd it look if we were spying on them?"

"If Endymion's in control of Darien, I don't really see what the problem is." He replied carelessly, though his voice was significantly lowered, "It wouldn't be the first time we've spied on them."

"Yeah, well, Darien is _Darien _now. Do you not see the blue eyes?"

Jadeite frowned, standing back up on his knees and peering over the bushes. "Yeah. Looks like your right." He ran a hand through his hair. "That is so _weird_ still. Endymion does not just have gold eyes. I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it."

"At least we know it _is _related to Serenity now." Zoisite said, sending his friend a ironic smile, "Should have figured, huh?"

"I'll say. Why was she screaming though?" He closed his eyes, straining his ears. "A nightmare?"

"Luna." Zoisite's brow furrowed as he looked at his temporary redhead friend. "She said she had a nightmare about Luna."

"Luna as in _Lady _Luna? Commander's Luna?"

"_Shh!_ Darien is saying something." A few seconds later, his face turned into a mask of shock. "Poison?" He gaped at the duo, falling back on his butt. "She's being _poisoned?_"

Meanwhile, Jadeite was watched his companion in rapt attention. "What is it? What'd he say? Zoi!" He hissed, snapping his fingers in front of the man's eyes. When that didn't work, he punched him in the shoulder. Slowly the dazed man turned to him. "Snap out of it! What'd Endymion say?"

"He…" The dark-haired man shook his head in disbelief. "said that Ami --that's Albry's reincarnation's name, remember?-- needs to confirm what a human Luna looks like because they've never seen her in that form themselves, apparently. " He frowned suddenly. "Now that's peculiar. They must have only seen her as a cat, but why _not _be humanoid?" He shook his head again. "Anyways, when Ami confirms Luna's description, it's proof that Serena's transformation broach --I'm assuming, given its name, that's the item she uses to transform into Sailor Moon --_wait_. I can't seem to recall the girls using anything to transform into Senshi. Do you?"

"Just get on with it!"

The European general rolled his eyes. "In short, Luna used a broach and almost died. She attacked Serena in revenge. If Ami confirms Luna's description, then Darien said that's proof that the nightmare _has _to be real and that Serena's broach, her powers, are what was _poisoning _her all along." He nodded grimly at Jadeite's slack jaw. "I agree. So if Serena had continued to transform, _she _would have died."

"And it _can't _be a dream because we both heard that scream and seen how worried Endymion was." Jadeite whispered before his head snapped back up to his friend suddenly. "So, Luna tried to-- …That painting. You know the one we snuck a peek at and got a 5 mile-run in a rainstorm for once Commander found out?"

Zoisite nodded slowly. "_Psycho _Luna." Simultaneously both men rocked back onto their knees and looked to their monarchs only to find the bench empty.

* * *

Darien sighed as he glanced down at the girl he was carrying bridal-style in his arms. It probably wasn't a good idea to carry Serena home like this but he doubted she'd wanted to be in a confined car space with him after what had happened last night. _'And it looks like I stuck my foot in my mouth once again. I should have asked that a little more… delicately, I suppose.'_

He startled out of his thoughts, almost missing a step in his stride, as Serena suddenly groaned and rubbed her head into his chest. "That's it." She mumbled, seemingly unaware of his presence just yet, "I need to stop falling asleep randomly. One day it's going to get me in a lot of trouble."

"I agree." He stated, amused as her head snapped up and she yelped, her arms instantly going around his neck for balance.

"D-Darien." She stuttered, looking around wildly and flushing at the looks of people walking past on the sidewalk. "Put me down!" She hissed with a glare, "Have you no sense of decorum!?"

"Nope." He said airily, tightening his hold around her back as if to prove his words. "Decorum, huh? Does this mean the increased vocabulary is here to stay permanently? I'm beginning to enjoy its company. I never thought I'd see the day you properly used the word 'decorum', let alone use it at all."

"I'm still waiting for my dopey-self to return." She mumbled, trying to ignore everyone's stares. _'Maybe if I pretend to be unconscious still… No. It's too late for that.'_

He sighed at both her tone and the way her eyes kept darting around nervously. "You're not dopey. I doubt that what you said yesterday --that a spurt of confidence gave you an increased vocabulary-- is true. If anything, it gave you the _courage _to use the knowledge you already had."

She looked up at him in surprise, biting her lip to fight back a sudden smile. "You think so?"

He shrugged, the movement kind of awkward because of his hold on her. "Sure. I bet underneath all that hair, you're as smart as Ami." His face darkened at the thought of the Senshi girls and with it thoughts of what Luna had quite possibly _had _done. _'If this dream was real and she tried to suffocate Serena…'_

The blonde sighed as she felt Darien's pace begin to quicken. Thinking quickly, she spoke again. "What? Not as smart as you?"

He glanced down at her with a chuckle, all the darkness fleeing his gaze. "I don't think anyone could achieve such greatness." He looked ahead again and his pace gradually slowed down but after a bit he looked back down, his face a mask of seriousness. "Though, if anyone could, I bet it would be you."

"Really?" She asked in a kind of pleased surprised at the unanticipated comment.

He felt a blush seep into his cheeks at her sparkly eyes. "I'm not some genius, Serena. It's not _that _great of a compliment."

"Liar." She whispered, smiling up at him. "With your big ego, you'd would never belittle your intelligence that way. Besides, you _are _a genius. I have no doubts."

"Maybe." He muttered even as his blush seeped deeper into his cheeks. _'I'm acting like a little girl! It's Serena. _Odango_. It's not big deal if she says I'm a genius or an idiot.'_

And fate proved him to _be _an idiot, at least in front of Serena, because he didn't see the woman he was headed straight for until it was too late. He crashed into the cart at her side, sending it to the ground and her belongings flying out. Serena, who had been staring at Darien curiously, released a startled squeak as she suddenly, and rather unexpectedly, found a bag of lemons and a smashed loaf of bread in her lap along with a carton of newly-broken eggs to cover everything.

"_Eww."_ She muttered, "That is so not the lunch I was hoping for."

Darien gave a choked laugh at her words, setting her down on the ground carefully before bending down to help the woman with her belongings. For his effort, he had an umbrella swiftly slapping his hands at what felt like full strength. He winced, snatching the appendages back to inspect their redness before looking up.

White-haired and wearing a scowl on her wrinkled face, the woman shook her umbrella at him threatening. "Don't you have any manners, young man? Or are you blind or something!?"

Serena frowned. "It was an accident, ma'am. Honest. We--we'll help you pick everything up." She began to bend down beside her friend but he put up an arm to block her at the last second. She swallowed as the umbrella hit the pavement and sent loose rocks up, right where her knees would have been.

"Ma'am." Darien tried, fighting back his own scowl, "I truly am sorry. Look, I will pay for everything that was ruined. I don't want to cause any trouble for anyone."

"You think you can just _pay _off your ill-manners?" The woman humph-ed and shook the umbrella so close to his face that he went cross-eyed for a second. "You rich brats are all the same! Have mummy and daddy pay for everything. Get you out of trouble with a cheery smile and a flash of cash! Pathetic! They didn't even bother to raise you right! And you!" Serena stepped back in surprise as the woman's umbrella brushed the edge of her nose. "I should have known anyone who imitates Sailor Moon's hairstyle would be as _rotten _as her!"

The blonde swallowed as the elderly woman waved her umbrella behind her to point at a display of televisions in an electronic store window. On all the screens were footage from the battle Jupiter had died in, the many identical reporters asking that haunting question.

"_**No doubt the question on everyone's minds right now though is where was Sailor Moon? And could she have been able to stop this horrific event from happening here tonight?"**_

She became aware of the tears trailing down her cheeks seconds before Darien's face appeared in her blurry vision. "It's _not _your fault." He whispered as he brushed a few of her tears off, "You know it isn't. I know it isn't and so does Ami, okay?"

She couldn't bring herself to say anything so she just nodded slowly. "_Aw_. She's a crybaby just like that blasted Sailor-girl was too." She grit her teeth, trying to ignore the woman's words only for her eyes to fly open in shock at the next ones. "You know, you even _look _like her…" She gasped, looking up at Darien only to flinch as his face darkened more than she had ever seen it do so before. The next time she blinked, he was in front of her and completely blocking her sight of the woman. Or, rather, the woman's sight of _her_.

"Ma'am. I truly am sorry for our mishap here. I only wanted to pay for the belongings I have ruined but if you want neither help nor money, then I will abide by your wishes." He nodded and quickly tried to usher away his silently crying friend, placing an arm over her shoulders and pulling her to him as he unconsciously tried to hide her face and hair.

"As if I'd want to use your parents hard earned money that you're wasting away!" The woman exclaimed, striking her umbrella against the pavement once again at their retreating backs, "I'd love to speak with them to tell them what a horrid son they have and how he associates himself with _bimbos_!"

Serena froze as the exact moment Darien did before looking up at him pleadingly. "No." She whispered, her eyes watering even more, "_Please_, it's not worth it." He glanced down at her, a gold flash lighting up his own eyes ominously, before he dropped his arm and turned around.

"If you wish to speak to my parents so desperately," He began; his voice was so controlled it sounded almost robotic to the blonde's ears. "then I suggest you begin swimming with the fishes, ma'am. Their ashes have been scattered in the ocean for a number of years. And while I'm sure I could contact one of the directors of the orphanages I grew up in, I would not want to waste their time on such a worthless matter. No. Not on a woman who doesn't realize that the most remarkable and caring girl that has ever existed had been staring her in the eyes. Not on a woman that is so calloused that she cannot see who is genuine and only wishes to help. No. I would not waste their time on such a matter. As my companion said, it simply isn't worth it."

The woman stared in shock, her mouth opening and closing like a fish.

Darien smirked but the action was grim. "Speechless? I had hoped you would be." He sighed, rubbing two fingers over the bridge of his nose. "I am sorry. Genuinely." He reached into his back pocket for his wallet, pulling out several bills. Knowing she wouldn't take them from him, he carefully placed them on the side of the tipped over cart, before eyeing her for a minute as he replaced the wallet. "It is never too late to learn that help is not charity."

He spun around to face Serena with a sigh. "Come on, let's get you home." He bent down, sweeping her off her feet into a bridal position again, but she didn't say one word of protest or even notice the increased stares they were getting now. She only nodded slowly, burying her face into his jacket and wishing she could get the woman's bitter words out of her head.

* * *

"Tell me why we're out here, again?" Jadeite asked, grumbling as he ducked a low hanging branch. They were somewhere in the vast park still, this time walking down a pathway quite a ways from where they had been spying on Darien and Serena. His companion was a few steps ahead with his palm pilot in one hand, frowning as he looked left and right. "Can't you change that beeping? It's really annoying."

Zoisite snorted. "For the _twelfth _time, we're out here because my scanner picked something up. And that's the point of the beeping, idiot. If it wasn't annoying, I would just go about ignoring it and completely missing dark energy until it was staring me in the face."

The Far-Eastern General frowned, rolling his eyes, but didn't say anything else on the matter because his friend _did _have a point. "Are we getting closer to the source, at least? I want to know where Endymion and Serenity disappeared to."

"They're probably long gone by now. And be quiet, will you? You're complaining too much and it's distracting me." Zoisite looked back down at his PDA, making him miss the tongue Jadeite stuck out at his back. Fortunately for both men, it wasn't long before the dark-haired general lead them off the path and into a group of trees, the beeping instantly becoming louder and shriller. "_That_, Jed, means we are close." He said, stopping mid-step and swinging his gaze over the immediate area, "You see anything? It must be small because the scanner can't seem to focus in any closer than it already has."

Jadeite frowned as he looked around. Tree. Grass. Fallen leaves. Flower. Tree. Tree. Sparkle-- _'What a minute.'_ His frown deepened as his eyes snapped back to the flash of light, zoning in on a circular golden object lying in the grass. He walked over warily, looking around but not seeing anyone or anything, before hunkering down in front of it. Gold-plated, a silver crescent moon, and four dots of color --orange, blue, green, and red-- to create a square encircling the crescent. Almost as if they were trying to protect it…

Zoisite's eyebrows rose incredulously as he stood behind his friend and caught sight of the object. "Is that what I think it might be?"

"A broach." Jadeite nodded; he thought about asking a question but instead only listened for the continuing shrill beeping of the scanner --it had gotten louder, though it was barely noticeable. "And it seems to me like we found our dark energy source." He hesitated, looking around cautiously again, before picking the broach up and weighing it in his hands. He frowned. "The encasing is almost solidgold." He commented somewhat incredulously, "I'm sure of it. I thought it was just plated."

"_Gold_." Zoisite sighed. "A gold broach with a silver crescent moon and four peculiarly colored dots." He paused, rubbing his forehead with one hand as he returned his PDA to his pocket with the other. "I can't believe this. Its characteristics are intentional. Meant to appeal to Serenity's subconscious and therefore entice her into accepting it."

"_Or_," Jadeite grinned wryly. "it's supposed to appeal to her femininity and general girly-ness." He sobered up at the intolerable look sent his way. "I know, I know. The gold appeals to her subconscious remembrance of Endymion. The dots to the girls. The silver cr-- well, that's self explanatory considering who she is. I'm not an idiot, Zoi. I recognize trickery when I see it." He frowned, muttering, "_most _of the time" under his breath and shooting a dark glare to his friend. One day he'd get back that fifty dollars conned out of him.

"Can I see it?" The European general eyed the broach thoughtfully after it was handed over, turning it this way and that in the afternoon light. It wasn't one solid piece but rather two halves fused together, which would imply that it opened or _could _be opened with some force. He frowned, weighing it in his hand like Jadeite had; there was a significant weight to it, as if it held something inside.

The redhead carefully searched the man's face as he stood up beside him. "You don't think…"

Zoisite nodded. "I do. We might not have just found Serenity's transformation broach and what was, according to Endymion, poisoning her. We might have also found the reason Albry was emitting dark energy. I think the girls' broaches, or whatever else they might use to transform, are fail-safes. I'm positive they never needed a device to transform in the past but they don't know that themselves. It's an ignorance that is perfectly exploitable."

"And seems to have been." Jadeite shook his head in a mixture of disbelief and disgust. "One wrong move and they're killed off. More than likely by a slow-acting poison, too, so it seems natural and doesn't bring up any major suspicions." He frowned considerately, his mind working overtime. "However, if Lady Luna said she tried to activate the powers but almost died, that implies there is probably one final burst of poison. _Or!_," He suddenly exclaimed in realization, "something that speeds up the poison already in their system and makes it instantaneous right then and there. Luna was more than likely gravely ill but it was improbable she would have died because I doubt she has any pre-existing poison in her body." He paused, beginning to pace back in forth from the slightly-stunned Zoisite. "So, I suppose it's very possible that right this minute, all the Senshi have some form of poison in their bodies and when they do make that wrong move, their next transformation instantly kills them. Any posthumous biopsy would reveal that _something _had been in their body all along and while doctors probably wouldn't be able to figure out what it was, they would still determine they were killed _naturally_. So, still, no major suspicions would arise."

"I'm impressed, Jed. I didn't think your brain worked properly anymore." Zoisite grinned to show he was teasing. "Nah, I know you have to be able to figure out things like that for your job. It's been uncommon to see that side of you lately, though." He shook his head to clear his amazement and held out a hand. "Before you get further into your hypothesis though, can I please see that knife you pulled out on Áine?"

Jadeite rose a curious eyebrow but didn't say anything as he lifted up his right foot and pulled off his boot. When his hand emerged with the black object that had been hidden inside, he carelessly dropped the shoe and wriggled his foot back into it. He took a second to pull off the knife's black scabbard, revealing a spear-point tip on the three-inch gleaming blade, before handing it over to the dark-haired man. He watched as he immediately ran the knife around the middle of the broach, where the halves were fused together. "What do you think is inside?"

"An answer. More questions, probably." Zoisite shrugged, looking around briefly to ensure nothing else was on the ground, before beginning to walk away. A few seconds later, he smirked as the broach popped open under his manipulations before both his expression and his trek froze as he got a look at what was inside.

The redhead whistled through his teeth as he leaned over to get a better look. "That's a shiny rock." He reached out to touch it but it was quickly snatched away before he could. "Hey!" His glare became a concerned frown at his friend's expression. "What is it?"

Zoisite continued to shake his head disbelievingly. "That's not just a shiny rock." He whispered, his eyes sliding up to Jadeite's. "That's the Silver Imperial Crystal."

* * *

"I'm sorry for not paying better attention earlier." Serena shifted her eyes upward, not bothering to move her head from where it was leaning heavily against Darien's chest. His face looked expressionless through her blurry eyes. "If I had," The man continued on, "that woman wouldn't have hurt your feelings and reminded you of Jupiter's death. And I doubt that that egg mess will come out in the wash, so your pants wouldn't be ruined either."

"It was an accident," She whispered, sighing as he shook his head. "It wasn't _anyone's _fault, Darien. Besides, she hurt your feelings too by what she said so carelessly. You're _not _a horrid son. And what she said about your parents raising you right… I'm sorry."

He shrugged lightly but a tenseness began to gather in his shoulders. "Nothing I haven't heard before. No need to apologize."

Her face paled, her lips parting in shock. "You've …heard things like that before?" Her eyes widened in horror as something occurred to her. "Does that mean Hotaru will too if her mother doesn't get better? Be hurt by some careless stranger on the street just because she may grow up without a family?"

"No." He answered somberly. She glanced back up at him but he was staring straight ahead, his eyes narrowed at nothing. "If Hotaru's mother dies, I will do however many interviews and meetings it would take to get her guardianship permanently. I would adopt her so she would always have a family. Even if it is just me and her."

The blonde took a deep shuttering, but relieved, sigh. "Thank you." She murmured against his jacket, "I just-- I want to know she'll always have someone incase her mother doesn't get better. Someone she could turn to for advice and everything else."

"She will with me, I promise."

She nodded but stayed silent for a few minutes, chewing on her bottom lip with her teeth, before voicing the main worry on her mind. "That woman," She whispered, "she realized I was Sailor Moon. I could see it in her eyes."

Darien's grip subconsciously tightened around the back of the girl's legs, having had the same fears himself but not willing to admit it. "No. She didn't. It was just a fluke she noticed the similarities. It should have happened a long time ago as it is, but she doesn't know."

She shook her head at the conviction in his tone before shivering as she remembered another person with the same whole-hearted conviction. "How could Luna say that?" She felt the body she was being held against completely stiffen as Darien stopped in the middle of the sidewalk. She winced. _'Uh-oh. I said that out loud, didn't I?'_ She looked around quickly to make sure no one was going to run into them but saw they weren't far from her neighborhood now, the sidewalk deserted expect for the two of them. "Darien?" She whispered hesitantly as she looked up at him.

"What did Luna do to you?" He suddenly demanded, making her almost jump at the sharp tone. He began walking again but his pace was agitated. "She tried to suffocate you, I know that for a fact, but there's something else. When you fainted, it was because you had remembered it. It wasn't because of my question." She stayed silent, forcing him to scowl after a minute. "Fine. Keep it to yourself then. Damn, do I regret saving Luna from being hit by that car when she still _was _a cat though."

Serena looked up, gasping in outrage. "Darien, that's horrible! How can you say that!?"

He glared down at her. "So what would you rather I say? That I hope that Ami _can _confirm her description and prove the dream was real? That you had _died_? Or whatever the hell may or may not have happened _hadn't _gotten you away and healed you? Well too bad because I'm not. You could be dead right now, Serena! Has that even sunk in yet? Either by Luna or your broach, you might have _died!_"

She immediately felt tears stinging the back of her eyes and hurriedly began pushing at his shoulders. "Let me go. I don't want to sit here and have my inadequacies thrown back in my face, Darien." She felt a few tears slip out as he continued to walk, refusing to release his hold. "Let me go!"

"You know that wasn't where I was going with that."

"I don't care!" She hissed, thumping his shoulders with more force, "Today made it quite clear to me that Sailor Moon _never _should have existed. I was just a fraud in a leotard waiting to be saved by you while I unknowingly gave my Dark Kingdom _husband _to perfect our betrayal! Now if only he'd fill me in on what was happening! Or, I don't know, _show _himself to me!" She hit his shoulder one last time, as hard as she possibly could, and felt like crying in relief as he finally stopped. The victory was short lived, though, because he didn't sit her down.

"You do _not _have a Dark Kingdom husband." He hissed, his hands involuntarily tightening around the blonde so much he was afraid he would leave bruises. She squeaked, making his loosen his hold just the slightest to remove her discomfort. "If he existed, he would be here with you right _now_." He continued angrily, "He would have been the one protecting you all along but he wasn't, _I _was." His eyes suddenly darkened. "If he _does _exist though, then he's a damn coward and won't survive for very long once I'm through with him. That's a promise."

"_**Don't worry. You wouldn't be alone forever. Wait until I get a hold of Tuxedo Mask and this husband of yours. They will join you very soon indeed. They won't survive long once I get a hold of them. That's a promise."**_

Serena shivered as Luna's frightfully similar words echoed through her mind. She swallowed thickly, pushing at his shoulders one more time. "Put me down. Now."

His scowl deepened as his grip tightened around her once again. "We're not to your house yet."

She squeezed her eyes shut to hold in tears. "I don't care. Put me _down_." A few tense minutes later, they snapped back open as he obeyed her wishes and sat her down on her feet gently. She immediately began to walk away, not looking back in fear of Darien's expression. They were close to her house, it was maybe a street or two over, so she would get there in no time. _'Then I can put this horrible day behind me…'_

"How is it that you are faithful to him? To a man that has caused so many problems for all his possible nonexistence?"

She was tempted to ignore Darien and keep walking, she really was, but the temptation to answer him was much stronger. "What else am I supposed to hold my faith in, then?" She asked as she looked over her shoulder, "The Senshi hate me. Princess Serenity says I should never have existed. Luna may have possibly tried to attacked me because of something that wanted to _kill _me. That woman, a _stranger _on the street, said I was rotten. I can't even hold any faith in Motoki now thanks to you!" She finally spun around to face him. "The guy I practically considered part of my family, my _brother_, Darien! I'm half-way afraid of turning my back to him because I think he might attack me just because of all your wild accusations about him and Minako!"

"So putting your faith in an imaginary person is good enough?" He asked incredulously.

"And how do you know he _doesn't _exist!?" She yelled, "If Luna really did attack me today, Darien, then were _you _the one who saved me? I wasn't anywhere near that bench when she was trying to suffocate me! How do you suppose I got away? I have no powers, so _I _couldn't have done anything!"

He felt his teeth grind together. "So your husband loves you enough to save you from Luna but not from every _single _youma battle you've been in? Not from being kidnapped by the Senshi and held hostage by them? Not from being attacked and burned by Mars? Isn't that a _wonderful _marriage, then!" He spat bitterly, "What's next? Are you going to honeymoon in the Dark Kingdom's dimension!?"

"I hate you!" She screamed, her cheeks red with a mixture of tears and anger, "I hate you!"

He winced, recoiling at the sight of her face. He hadn't meant to say any of that by something inside him was just so _angry _at the thought of her married to anyone, let alone a Dark Kingdom general. He decided to ignore how much that sounded like jealousy. "Serena," He whispered, taking a few steps toward her. He cringed as she took a few more back. _'Just like the other day. Scared of me all over again.'_ He stopped, rubbing a frustrated hand through his hair. "Look, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have---"

"No! You _shouldn't _have!" She interjected furiously, "You shouldn't have done _anything_! You shouldn't have told me your thoughts about Motoki siding with the Senshi! You shouldn't have found me that night with Rei! You should never have even come to that first youma battle! You should never have been Tuxedo Mask in the _first _place!" She felt her breath hitch and she shook her head wildly, tears streaming down her face faster. "You never should have been Tuxedo Mask because then Luna _never _would have known about you and--and she wouldn't have--!" She shook her head again, hugging herself around the middle. "Just go _away_, Darien!" Her head snapped up as she heard him beginning to walk closer. _"Go away!"_ She screamed.

"Serena…"

Her face twisted slightly and she abruptly pulled one of her shoes off, throwing it at him with all her might. She didn't feel any satisfaction as it made contact with his chest though, instead she released muffled sob when he refused to move. "FINE! _I'll _go away then!" Before she lost her courage, she immediately turned around and began running as fast as she could in the general direction of her street.

Darien sighed, his hands clinching together as he watched her run away. It wouldn't be hard to catch up with her, not with the way she was off balanced by her missing left shoe and the way she wasn't running exactly straight, but he couldn't bring himself to upset her worse than she already was. And he knew it would be inevitable right now. He glared down at her white and pink sneaker without really seeing it, his mind flashing back to his earlier words. "That's what you remembered." He whispered, "Luna threatened to kill me. Tuxedo Mask. And probably this fabled husband of yours, too, which is why you were so upset when _I _threatened him." His teeth grinded together irritably as he bent down to pick up the shoe and began to walk back to his apartment. "Damn it, Serena, I'll not going to let her kill me. Hold you faith in _me_."

Deep inside his head, Endymion scowled darkly and punched the vast darkness around him, instantly swearing as his hand made no impact with the mist. "Hold faith in the _both _of us, Serenity." He whispered somberly, holding his head in his hands, "We _are _your husband."

* * *

"_Serena, open this door!"_

"Serena, please, we just want to know you're alright…"

The blonde squeezed her eyes shut against the pounding against the bathroom door, her parents individual voices echoing through her mind. She supposed she should be glad that Shingo had stayed blissfully silent through this whole affair. He was probably still shell-shocked in the living room, actually.

"Sweetie," Ikuko murmured against the brown door, giving her husband a swift glare as he opened his mouth to yell again, "Are you okay? We--we didn't mean---"

"_**Can you believe Sailor Moon?" Kenji asked his wife almost disbelievingly, his eyes not leaving the afternoon news the two of them were watching.**_

_**The purple-haired woman looked up from answering Shingo's question, the boy returning to his handheld game with a nod. "What do you mean, dear?"**_

"**That!**"_**The brown-haired man exclaimed, waving a hand toward the television. "One of her teammates dies, making the others fight twice as hard, and she **_**still **_**continues to abandon everyone." He sighed, shaking his head in dismay, and leaned further back in the couch. "Just you wait, thanks to her, the whole city will be overrun by those monsters in no time."**_

_**Ikuko bit her lip. "I would say she was just mourning her loss, but I suppose you might be right. She never appeared at that battle when poor Sailor Jupiter died, in the first place. Maybe she has abandoned everyone…"**_

"_**Have you ever thought that maybe she didn't have a **_**choice **_**in the matter!?" Serena felt her breath come in gasps as her eyes darted from one startled family member to another from where she stood in the room's doorway. The tears she had finally gotten control of returned with a vengeance as they all continued to gape at her. "**_**Well? **_**Have you ever thought that maybe the other Senshi didn't **_**want **_**me to be Sailor Moon anymore? That I didn't have a choice in continuing to fight anymore!?"**_

"_**Y-you…?" She felt the blood draining from her face as her mother began to stand, her eyes fixated on her hair. Now she understood the looks that had been leaking into their eyes: it had been **_**realization**_**. They'd started to notice the similarities, just like that woman on the street, but this was worse; she'd confirmed it before they even had to question it. "That hair…. Why didn't we ever--?"**_

"_**Serena," Kenji began hesitantly, "You were…" He shook his head, not able to finish the statement.**_

_**Shingo felt the game slide out of his hands but couldn't bring himself to do anything about it. He continued to stare at Serena, an image of Sailor Moon involuntarily superimposing itself over who he'd always considered his lazy, crybaby of a sister. To his disbelief, his sister **_**did **_**look like the super heroine.**_

_**Horror began to set in the blonde's mind as she watched her parents stand up, their eyes darting everywhere on her. "Oh, god…" She whispered, taking a few steps back. "I--I **_**knew **_**I shouldn't have come home yet. K-knew I s-should have calmed down first."**_

"Serena…" The girl flinched as her mother's voice brought her out of her memory. She stared at the mirror, taking in the image of the crying, red-faced girl. A year ago, she would _never _would have recognized that as her future self; she, also, would never had considered doing what she was about to do. She clenched and unclenched her right hand, hearing a resounding _'snip snip' _echoing through the small room. She continued to gaze at the mirror, staring at the blonde hair flowing around her like a cape. She couldn't wear her hairstyle anymore; it was beginning to cause too many problems. Problems she did not need added to the ones _already _existing.

"Serena! _Answer _us!"

"_Kenji! _Yelling isn't helping anything!"

Outside the door, the pounding on the door began anew and Serena bit her bottom lip so hard she immediately tasted the coppery tinge of her blood. Her eyes stayed fixated on the portion of hair in her left hand, her heart pounding in her chest. She squeezed her eyes shut as the scissors severed the hair, immediately feeling more tears trailing down her cheeks to join the ones already there.

* * *

Done: March 25, 2009. 9 pm

Posted: March 25, 2009 9:20 pm-ish

1. Valerie Davis. (VAL uh ree) Derived from _Valerius:_ A Roman family name meaning "to be strong". Davis (DAY vis) Derived from the given name _David _meaning "beloved". Yup, now you know Makoto's real name. And now Darien knows it; hehe, I wonder what'll happen? He already knows something fishy is up with her "disappearance" from America.

2. _"When she slapped Serenity?" Jadeite asked, wincing at the memory, "Boy was Endymion mad when she did. Her nails almost left a scar if I recall correctly."_ This is a reference to chap. 12 (god, that was a _long _time ago). It was when Serena fell of the fire escape trying to get away from Darien, remember? He patched her up and, as he was falling asleep, had a vision. To make a long story short, he was looking around the room when someone yelled _**"No! Stop it!"**_ It was Serena sleeping on a bed with three scratches on her face that looked like nails --Now you know it was a result of Áine's nails.

Well, first off, I have to say that I loved: _"Nah, just a dishtowel." The man replied carelessly, "Kind of crusty with something or other and who knows how long it was in that dirty laundry hamper but, you know…" He laughed as the captive turned a seasick green. "I'm kidding! Man, you should have seen your face Áine!"_

"_Afff--ol!"_

It just kept cracking me up. XD Generals are so funny when they're all together. It was the lightheartedness of a, overall, depressing chapter. Though it was _very _revealing. You found out little Rose is a psychic-empath. Serena _almost _caught Motoki in the act of leaving the secret arcade room. Serena cut her hair --gasp!-- and her parents know she's Sailor Moon now. Then the generals have her broach _and _the Silver Imperial Crystal (wait until that storyline comes to the forefront. Hehe). And, of course, the biggest thing of all: Áine had been pregnant but someone killed her unborn child! And she _never _died! WHAT!? Well, now you understand her actions just a little better; even though that's a horrible thing to happen to anyone.

_**FYI:**_

"_I will never understand your devotion to that man. He hates you. Did you not see the Kunzite in the forces you lead on Lunaria? That Kunzite stared at you with anger. With hatred. He would have killed you." (chap.25)_

_----------------------_

"_During the Fall, I ordered one of Beryl's youmas to kill Caderyn. My own _brother_." She snarled, "Does that answer your question?"_

"_But she is --was-- your cousin!" Jadeite continued on in disbelief, "And the other Senshi for Terra's sake! They were you sisters-in-arms yet you _completely _betrayed them!"-----------------------_

"_Áine had been pregnant but…" He stopped, unable to say._

_Nephrite had no such qualms. "But the next time we saw her, she was trying to drown Serenity in a bath and she admitted to ordering Cadeyrn's death also."_

---------------------------

Okay, many of you having been asking **why/ how **Áine was a danger to Serenity. That explains that: she truly, _completely _betrayed everyone --as in, she isn't a Senshi in the way a Senshi should be, anymore. Think "Dark Senshi", I guess? The first strike against Áine in everyone's eyes was deciding to work for her boss --whom hates the Senshi, believes they should never exist and therefore must die-- because without the Senshi, Serenity is vulnerable for attack. And, boy, does her boss want to attack Serenity. Also, her boss works with Beryl (always a bad thing, right?) and what makes it worse is that Áine and her powers were kinda "loaned out" to help with the Moon Kingdom's invasion. She was pretty much the _main _Dark Kingdom general during the Fall. Evil Jed, Zoi, Kunz, and Neph all had to take orders from _her_.

What's a worse danger than a woman with the powers of a Leader Senshi when she's working for the other side? If you think about it, she's also a danger for just being _herself_. Serenity is inclined to completely trust Áine, both as the leader of her Senshi _and _as a cousin. Áine is one of the biggest dangers that could _ever _exist for Serenity/Serena --which is why her boss took advantage of it and manipulated her as you learned in this chapter.

Yup, so if you still have questions about all this, go ahead and ask me, okay? All that above isn't Áine's _whole _story but it's a good portion of it so I should be able to ask a good chunk of any questions.

IMPORTANT: I would like to remind everyone that the real generals and Artemis weren't on the Moon when the Fall happened, they were still on Terra. They don't know what happened on Lunaria except for what they "find" (will explain later).

Lots of information, right? Hopefully you guys all let that digest properly. I'm having some trouble with it myself, so beware. O.O

_Tiger Celeste._


	28. Chapter 28

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

Okay, so I know that many of you were worried about this change in Serena's hair. I'm not crazy people, I'm not going to make her bald or anything. No faith, I swear. T___T

We have officially passed the 300 review mark, YAY!!! For all those who have ever reviewed, thank you so much! I can only hope that the continuation story will reach this many reviews! Of course, thanks can't be said without extending it those of you who are silent readers. I appreciate you all! :)

**Genie05 the second**: I hope my PM to you cleared up some things about the subspace pocket. Hehe, I guess you'd call the story a button-turner then? O.o I'm pretty proud of my Darien/Endymion. He isn't ideally the way I want him to be yet, but hopefully soon. Endymion's kinda scary-powerful right now, with the way he's going around threatening and/or hurting people… Sere should calm him down some eventually. :) And never fear, Makoto will appear soon and Dare/Sere will reconcile and talk even sooner.

**CrazyLikeaFox**: Well, I'm glad someone likes my believable relationship between Dare/Sere! Even though it is _very _frustrating and you want to scream and them to hurry it up already. --sigh-- Yeah, Venus is really… strange. She's a good love/hate character, I think, and Motoki's finally developing some character to him. And generals… they are so awesome to write; so random too. Lol. :) And, yes, you should hate Luna and Rei at this point. Their actions are still strictly unjustifiably evil.

**vknightkiss0x0**: Whoa, you read all the chapters in one day? 0.0 How long did it take you? Welcome to the story!

**Moonlight**: Thank you for gracing me with a review! I like being a silent reader myself… Thanks for the compliment as well, but I really don't think I'm very talented. And don't think you're a stupid ditz! No one is. And trust me, I can't spell anonymous either without the automatic spell check. xD

**ValkyrieCeles**: I don't know _exactly _when the story is going to end but I'm working overtime in creating a little summary of each chapter so I can. Right now I'm summarizing 31, and its not it. Holy crap, though, 30 is a busy chapter by my calculations! Yesh. Yay, battle scenes; I wasn't sure about them. I can never find the write words for the actions in my head…

**Lady Clark-Weasley of Books**: Darien completely needed a bigger part in the anime. Prince/Future-_King _of Earth, people! Not just Serena's soul-mate and Rini's father! Hehe, Luna gave me the creeps too! I got goose bumps when the first few times I read it. I have issues with the Cheshire Cat so I had to include that grin. --sweat drop-- Ooh, I have plans for Luna that I am quite pleased with! Completely will throw you in the water when it gets down to it in the continuation. Rei… hmm. Innocent bystander? Perhaps. Controlled by Luna? …Nah. I finally _completely _figured out what was wrong with her myself and what was going to happen to her… before I posted the last chapter, I think it was. Made a comment about it in someone's review answer. Hmm. The old lady that Dare/Sere ran into yesterday was actually a parallel for the woman Nephrite helped at the beginning of the chapter. Both were around the same age but completely different; I think I'm unconsciously "grounding" Serena to the different kinds of people the word is made of, or something. Nurse June was just a big meanie; but Hotaru _is _Sailor Saturn, maybe she unconsciously draws bad people to her? You just never know what my fingers will type up. Typos. Agh!! One day I'll rein them in, promise! Thanks for the long review! I like receiving them so I can rant back. :)

**Gwen xx**: Serena, psycho? Nah! Just a little overwhelmed and close to breaking down. She's been going through a lot. Aw, of course Sere deserves Darien ): He's definitely not perfect either… Yup, Rose is psychic. She has to have some kind of ability, I thought, for being the daughter of a Senshi. Áine boss will be revealed, eventually. And she really does hate Serena _that _much. Oh, she can pretty much be _Beryl's _boss if she wanted to be. She's not Queen Metaria from the manga, though. Nope, someone else entirely! And _very _powerful; she's been manipulating a whole lot of things.

**White Ivy**: What happened 10, 000 years ago? …Bad things, man. _Bad _things. Ahh, I so want to do a prequel more and more!

**JB**: Haha, thanks for all the wonderful words! :) I like having all the people in this story as real and believable as they can be. And, yup, like once-a-month updates means super long ones. It's justification in my mind, lol. For your number one, Áine is very complicated; very conflicted about a lot of things. I think you really have to think about it from Áine's POV. You find out your pregnant, go to tell its father only to get into an argument and slapped your closest cousin. At that point in time, your future-boss had already been trying to recruit you and not long after, she catches you unawares and kills your child in revenge for denying her. That isn't her complete story though, there's still a few more things that caused her to make that turn. Number 2, someone is going to mention Darien's gold eyes to him very soon, but I agree. That would have been the perfect time for Endy to come out and cause lots of ruckus. But (well, you'll read the theory later in the chapter so I see no harm in mentioning it now), Endymion's emotions weren't strong enough for him to come out. He's not the one bothered by the fact Serena is married (DK husband, irrelevant); he _is _her husband. It's _Darien _that's jealous of the fact that Serena might be married to _anyone_. That jealousy was a strong emotion, it made him to lash out and say things that caused Serena to say she hated him, right? He's jealous, and that's made even stronger when he briefly thought Sere was being the faithful little wife to her DK husband. Number 3, yup! The child was Kunz's. Number 4, *See note way above* I'm not crazy, it's more the hairstyle than the length that needs to go. Haha, if you have anymore questions I'll be glad to answer them. I enjoy doing so. :)

**Aleric**: Yes. Áine's boss is the same woman that killed her unborn child and is posing as Serenity. She, also, was the princess pleading for the crystal in Darien's dreams. People have no clue how complicated it is. Áine never even know about her plan for Valkyrie, and that's not all she doesn't know about, either!

**little princess of mercury**: It never occurred to anyone to open Serena's broach because anything was inside, that's why the crystal was under their noses the whole time. Just plain ol' obliviousness. Nope, Beryl isn't the one blackmailing Áine. It's the woman pretending to be Serenity. No, Jupiter wasn't _pretending _to be a teenager --she honestly thought she was one! Áine didn't know about her boss's plan for Valkyrie, which is why she originally thought Val had ran away and pretended to be a teenager. Well, that and she knew that comment would hurt Nephrite.

Whew! Again, thank you every reviewer and silent reader. Don't afraid to ask me questions, I have no problem answering!

On to the story~!

* * *

Serena bit her lip nervously as she stood at the top of the stairs, twirling around a few strands of the hair floating around her on a finger. To put it simply, it felt weird having short hair. _'Okay,'_ She told herself as she looked back pensively, _'It's not like most people consider it _short _hair. I mean, it still goes to my knees, but… it's short to me. And everyone who knows me too.' _Self-consciously she touched a side of her head where an odango usually was, feeling smoothed down hair instead. _'And that is __**very **__weird…'_ But neither the short hair or the lack of odangos was a bad kind of weird, just… _different_-weird. Like, when she'd first tried chocolate chip ice cream as opposed to her normal chocolate. Both were good in their own rights, they were just different.

She groaned as her stomach rumbled loudly at the thought of food. _'Great. Now to just gather the courage to go down there and get my breakfast… Come on. It's just my family. It's not like _won't _figure out why I cut it.'_ She abruptly stopped, having only gone down two steps. That, also, was a reason she didn't want to go downstairs. Thanks to her big mouth, and if her assumption was right on _why _people were suddenly noticing the similarities between her and a heroine of Tokyo, her family knew she was Sailor Moon. _'__**Had **__been Sailor Moon.'_ She corrected herself, _'Which means they can't really say anything about it. It's done and over with; there is no possible way I can ever be her again so they don't have to worry. Unless, of course, they start asking questions.'_ She stopped again, this time having taken five steps down. _'Like why I hadn't been there to save Makoto. Or why I'm not Sailor Moon anymore. Or who the other Senshi are.'_

"Oh, my…"

The blonde snapped terrified eyes downwards to see her mother at the bottom of the stairs, one hand on the railing and the other covering her mouth. _'Ah! Abort, abort. Run, Serena!'_ No matter how hard she tried though, she couldn't bring herself to obey her thoughts. She was completely frozen as the woman slowly climbed the steps up to her and lifted a shaky hand to run through her hair. "Y-you don't look like _her _anymore." Ikuko whispered disbelievingly, her eyes fixated on where the odangoes used to be.

Serena winced. "I--I couldn't. Not after yesterday." She smiled timidly. "Do--do you like it? I was thinking about cutting it a little shorter maybe…"

Ikuko looked into her daughter's eyes, seeing the truth she'd spent all last night desperately wishing she'd been mistaken on. "Y-you really were… Sailor Moon, weren't you?" She asked slowly, watching as a tear instantly slipped out of Serena's left eye. "All that time you were the one saving us. I--I just--" She shook her head, "--don't believe it. You're my _baby_. You--you couldn't have been…"

The teenager turned away from her mother's piercing stare to look at the photos hanging against the wall of the staircase. "Don't worry. It's over. I'm not Sailor Moon anymore. It… it's impossible to be her now. No one would want me to be, anyways." She finished in a whisper, biting her lip.

"All those late night battles," Ikuko continued, still in a state of shock, "it had been _you_. Which was why you were always so tired in the morning and had a hard time getting to school. And-- and when the teachers said you couldn't focus, it-- how _could _you have? With thoughts of what was going to happen and whether or not you would be k--_killed_…" She sucked in a deep breath, stopping herself.

Serena's blurry eyes took in the latest family portrait taken back in January-- only a short time before Luna had appeared in February and changed her whole life. A happy go-lucky smile was forever etched onto her face in the photo, not marred by the things she had seen afterwards and all the experiences she was enduring now. She cringed as she felt her mother catch her chin and turn her head; she swallowed thickly as she looked into the woman's brown eyes. "Mom…"

Abruptly and unexpectedly, Ikuko broke out into a smile. "You… you're still my baby though. Still my little Serena." She brushed off the girl's tears as they ran down her cheeks faster. "No matter what the world thinks and sees when they look at Sailor Moon, you are still _my _baby. You're still Shingo's brother and your father's daughter. You're still _Serena_, just like you always have been, okay?"

"Mom…" The blonde took a deep, shuttering breath as she fell into Ikuko's chest and hugged her for all she was worth. "Thank you. Thank you so much. I--I had been afraid…" She squeezed her eyes shut. "so afraid you wouldn't-- that you wouldn't love me anymore."

"Never." The housewife murmured comfortingly as she kissed the crown of her daughter's head and returned the hug. "I'll always love you and you'll always be a part of this family. No matter what happens." They stayed like that for a few minutes until she leaned back and looked at Serena in consideration. "I like this hairstyle." She said with a soft smile, "It makes you look more mature."

She received a shaky smile in return. "T--thanks."

Ikuko let go with a sniffle, her smile widening. "Come on, let's go get you some breakfast. We can see if your brother and father will fall out of their chairs once they catch sight of you." She took the girl's arm carefully and began walking down.

"Okay." Serena let her mother lead her, feeling a weight lift off her shoulders with each step they took. _'Now to get past my first day back at school…'_

* * *

Rose hummed under her breath, nodding her head to a rhythm only she knew, as she gleefully pulled out all the objects from her father's wallet. She frowned as she picked up a grey card and tried understanding what it said; she only recognized her Dada's name though.

"Please don't chew on that, sweetie. It doesn't taste good." She froze, the card halfway up to her mouth, and looked over at her Dada. He was sitting at a table with two other men that he said were her Uncle 'ed --the one with light red hair-- and her Uncle Zoo --the one with brown hair. He said that they were there when she was born and he had known them for a _long _time but she couldn't remember them. Dada said it was because their hairs were supposed to be a different color. He'd laughed too, at least until her Uncle Zoo had said they didn't have to cut their hairs. Then Dada threw a pillow at them.

Her eyes slid down to the sparkly round object sitting in the middle of the table. A perturbed frown pulled down her lips; Dada said she couldn't play with it --that it was only a big people's toy-- but it was so _pretty_. Her frown deepened as she looked back down at the wallet. Dada said she could play with it since they forgot to bring teddy but there was nothing _fun _in it. Just more of those cards. She suddenly gasped in delight as she pulled out another card only to find it was a picture. "Mama." She whispered, her eyes watering as she ran her small fingers over the image.

It _was _her Mama. The brown hair and green eyes just like hers; she was wearing a necklace with a _4 _in a green rock and a white dress with lots of brown stripes going everywhere. The child's eyes misted over with more tears as she continued to look at the picture; her Mama was smiling just like the last time she'd seen her. Before she woke up and Dada said Mama was gone and they had to go find her. Yesterday Dada had took her to a place like where they lived -- an "art-ment", she grinned proudly as she remembered the word. He said Mama had been living _there_ while she waited for them. She didn't understand _why_ though and when she asked where Mama was _now_, Dada didn't answer…

She gasped again as something occurred to her. If she showed Dare-Dare Mama's picture maybe he might have seen her! G'anpa said she went to skool and Dada had told her Dare-Dare went to a type of skool before too! She smiled widely as she pulled her toddler backpack closer and shoved the picture inside. She giggled. The next time she saw Dare-Dare, she'd show him Mama and maybe he would know where she was so she could be with Rose again and Dada wouldn't be sad anymore!

* * *

Nephrite smiled as he glanced over to see Rose giggling. _'Well, at least she found something to entertain herself with.'_ His smile slipped as his attention turned back to the white object between he and his fellow generals. He hadn't believed Jadeite when he'd called and told him what he and Zoi had found yesterday. The Silver Imperial Crystal. How could he have believed _they _had it? It was the source of the Moon and the Lunarian royal family's power. An object reportedly one of the strongest that had _ever _existed in the universe; so strong it could either destroy or heal whole planets depending on what its wielder chose to do.

Neither he nor any of the other generals had ever even _seen _the crystal --no one but the _very _highest ranked Silver Alliance officials and the Lunarian royal family were allowed to do such a thing. Zoisite had been quick to remind both he and Jadeite that they _had _seen a painting of it by the reincarnation of one of those high-rank officials, however. Armed with his vague memory of how the painting looked, as well as the sheer _power _he could feel, he just couldn't deny the truth staring him in the face from halfway across the table in Zoi's hotel room.

"Okay," He said as he looked up at his friends, "What are we going to do about this? You guys found the Silver Imperial Crystal."

"_Inside _a device Endymion said was poisoning Serenity." Jadeite pointed out, "There's no telling how it got inside there or how _long _it had been inside. _Or _what that poison might have done to it because I'm not sure where it comes from. It could be from the physical encasing of the broach or it could be channeled through Serenity's Senshi powers." He paused, shaking his head. "I can't even wrap my mind around the fact Serenity is a _Senshi_."

"I don't even want to _think _about the ramifications of _that_." The mahogany-haired general commented, his eyes still fixated on the crystal thoughtfully. "What I want to think about is this poison _inside _Serenity. Are you two sure it's real?"

Zoisite sighed and leaned back in his chair. "I'm not going to take any chances and doubt what we overheard from Endymion. You know he would be the last person to even _joke _about something poisoning her if there was a slightest chance of it being possible." He frowned. "There's also the fact that I picked up dark energy from Albreda. I know she would never dabble into any dark arts or whatever. It's not like her."

"Well, you _are _biased." Jadeite smirked before shaking his head. "But I agree. It wouldn't be like her. Besides, there's the fact a transformation device--" He pointed to the golden base the crystal was still sitting in; the top half of the broach with its peculiar dots and silver crescent moon sat beside it. "--exists in the _first _place. Zoi and I racked our brains last night but we can't remember _any _of the girls using anything to transform. Ever."

"Never can I." Nephrite added quietly, "It just, well, _happened_ it seemed like. One second they were themselves, the next Senshi. So, because of the lack of previous transformation devices, as of right now we are assuming that a poison _is _existing in each of them," He waved a hand in Jadeite's general direction. "and what you said about that one wrong move and their next Senshi transformation kill them is true, right?"

"Yes." Zoisite answered, crossing his arms over his chest. "The problem I see, however, is the one wrong move aspect. While we were listening to Serenity yesterday, the implication was that she _had _made that wrong move and the signal was given for her elimination."

"But Lady Luna got caught up in it instead, based on what you told me." Nephrite frowned considerately. "So we need to figure out what that wrong move was and prevent any retribution sent her way. We, also, need to find a way to help the others be as lucky as Serenity was in avoiding that fatal transformation." He sighed, rubbing his forehead. "Who's in the biggest danger right now? Who's more likely to make that wrong move next?"

"I figure it can't be Áine because she's probably a part of this. As for Bell-- _Rei_, Cadeyrn says there's something _**wrong **_--like _flirting _with _Endymion _wrong--" Jadeite cringed as he continued, "so I doubt she's in any danger of rebellion." His eyes slid over to Zoisite sympathetically. "Albreda on the other hand…"

Nephrite grimaced as European general stared at the table blankly, not reacting. "Are you sure it can't be Áine? With what we learned yesterday…"

"Oh, she's _definitely _being manipulated and blackmailed." Jadeite confirmed with a grim nod, "No doubt about it. But there's a reason she's been kept around for so long if it really _has _been ten-thousand years for her. It's probably just for some kind of sick amusement but, still, I don't think she'll be gotten rid of so easily. And she _does _have something the others don't: full knowledge of the Silver Millennium. She knows what she's facing better than anymore. She's safer than…"

Zoisite nodded somberly as his friend trailed off. "Let's face it, guys. This might finally be the time that Albry's brain gets in her trouble. One question, one realization, could be determined to be that wrong move. _She _is in the greatest danger of being eliminated from the equation, just for being herself."

"And what are we going to do about it?" Jadeite questioned, "How are we going to protect her?"

"You two don't worry about it." Zoisite answered after a few moments, "She already knows me so it would be better if neither of you are introduced to her. That way, if I fail or something goes wrong, you can each have your own chance."

"Oh, fu-- _fudge_." Nephrite amended quickly, shooting a glance at his daughter. She remained oblivious to him and the others, having gone back to pulling out his wallet's contents merrily.

"Now I'm hungry, thanks a lot." Jadeite laughed. "What is it?"

"Remember how I told you I ran into Serenity's reincarnation while I was dropping Rose off with Darien at the hospital?" Nephrite asked quickly, receiving a nod from the other men in return. "And how he wants to get guardianship of that child --Hotaru?" Another nod. "Serena was roommates with her --that being how both of them had met the child-- and, to me, _roommates _implies a fair amount of time. Yet, when I studied Serena, she didn't seem to have any physical signs of injury. …Do either of you know of anything significant that happened recently? Like an accident?"

"From what I can remember, that out of control delivery truck barreled downtown about a week ago. The only hospitalized casualties had been a young child and her mother, though."

"And I told you guys how I was informed during that interview that that had been Hotaru and her mother…" Nephrite reminded Zoisite, who nodded.

"I can't think of any other--" Jadeite stopped, his eyes widening as he caught on to what the man was implying. "And if there hadn't been any _physical _injuries, there is a good possibly this poison had had an adverse affect that resulted in her being rushed to the hospital, when she became Hotaru's roommate while under observation…"

Zoisite stood up quickly. "I'm calling Cadeyrn, maybe he knows something. I'm sure he had to have visited Serena; she was once his cousin, after all."

* * *

'_Today hasn't been so bad.'_ Serena thought as she nibbled on top of her pencil eraser, _'Not as eventful I thought it would be.'_

When her mother had dropped her off, she'd gotten curious stares and comments about her hairstyle --just like she thought she would-- but overall it had been _much _better than expected. There hadn't been any: "_Wow_. You know, I hadn't realized just how much you looked like Sailor Moon before." or "I'm glad you finally got rid of that hairstyle! Can you believe Sailor Moon copied it in the first place!? Now it's been ruined by that--that!" or any other similar comments.

Instead, most of it had been similar to: "I think you look even prettier without the odangoes, Serena." and "I _never _thought you would ever change that hairstyle! It's nice to see something different!" and some just plain "Cool!"-s floating through her ears.

Of course, she hadn't been able to get away _completely _free. With the comments came questions on _why _she'd gotten rid of the hairstyle. More than once she'd been forced to answer with a shrug and "It was just time for a change". Luckily the vast majority accepted the explanation but there were those --_'Read: Umino!'_ she thought with a mental scowl-- that wouldn't let up. He kept demanding why she would give up a hairstyle that she'd had since she was a toddler and if it had anything to do with the "illness" and "youma attack" she'd suffered. And, Umino being nosy Umino, made sure to ask loud enough to draw lots of attention --thus giving her a round of questions about both incidents and many classmates commenting on how she had some awful luck to be sick so long and come back to Tokyo only to be attacked by a monster.

She'd warded off a good majority of the questions with things like "I _know_. Can you believe it? I would have just stayed in Kyoto if I knew I was going to be attacked like that!" Then, when people had added their own comments about Senshi --most about Sailor Moon's disappearance and Jupiter's death-- she'd intervened with her own questions. _'Never underestimate gossip.'_ She thought with a delightful smile. _'All it took was a few well placed questions to have all the girls --and Umino-- explaining every single thing that had happened since I'd been gone and forgetting all about the Senshi.'_

Most of the information had been mind numbing (and uneasy when Makoto's sudden "move" was brought up) but she thought she'd gotten through it with flying colors and none worse for wear. There had only been one major problem all day: trying to talk to Ami. Even before she'd left her house, she'd planned to get out of the car as fast as she possibly could and set out to find her friend. Instead, by the time she was halfway to the school's front doors, people had realized just _who _she was. _'I swear,'_ She grumbled to herself, _'I was swarmed in five-seconds flat.'_

Homeroom hadn't been any better, either. In the short fifteen minutes or so the class was, she'd only managed to look at Ami and receive an astonished look and a "You look very lovely today, Serena. Mature, I would even say" in return before being bombarded with other classmates that didn't leave until they were all forced to go to their next class.

She'd had high hopes for Gym --that being the only other class she shared with Ami-- but it turned out that it was even _worse _than homeroom. The blonde glowered at the stack of paperwork at her elbow; she'd barely taken a step inside the locker room before being dragged away by the teacher because, apparently, her parents had informed the school of "how, until further notice, it would be best she didn't participate in strenuous activities because she was still recovering from her attack". Unfortunately, her teacher took that to mean she couldn't do _anything_. So, instead of changing and being able to talk to Ami during a game of basketball, she'd been given a stack of worksheets about game rules and other ridiculous things she needed to know for an upcoming test where she could earn all the credit she had missed and _would _miss. She hadn't managed to say a word to Ami and the class was almost over.

'_Table tennis, also called ping pong, involves two or four players hitting a lightweight ball back and forth with paddles. Players must allow the ball to bounce only once on their side of the net before returning it with the intent of bouncing it on the opponent's side. Table tennis owes its origins to England, when-- This is endless!'_ Serena groaned as she put the worksheet down. _'Where table tennis started or how to play it isn't important when there was more pressing matters at hand! Or __**ever**__!'_

She sighed as she cupped her chin and looked toward her classmates. She guessed she would just have to wait until lunch to talk to Ami, maybe while they were sitting under their usual tree with… everyone… around them. She blanched. _'People seeing me and Ami talk. Ami and the _traitor _talking. If that inadvertently found its way to Rei or Luna or the Princess… _not _good. I don't want Ami to get in any kind of trouble. But, what can we go? We need to talk. To catch up.'_ She sighed in inner conflict, tapping her pencil restlessly against her stack of papers, before jumping as the bell to go to the locker room buzzed. Thinking quickly, she tore a corner off one of the rule sheets and scribbled a note on it before racing inside to shove it into Ami's gym locker for the girl to find.

* * *

Not even a half hour after being call, Zoisite let Motoki in his hotel suite. Immediately the former-Solarian's attention riveted to the giggling child sitting on the carpet. Both Nephrite and Jadeite were flocked on either side of her, making funny faces in an attempt to make her laugh more. "Who's the cutie?"

"It's just me, Cadeyrn." Jadeite look up to see the said man --and Zoi-- grimacing, so he smirked and batted his eyelashes. "I _am _pretty cut though, aren't I?" His laughter became a startled shout as Nephrite shoved his shoulder and he fell onto the ground. _"Hey!_ You're lucky your daughter is in your lap or I'd--

"_Actually_," The American general stated with a grin as he talked over the threatening man, "this is Rose. Me and Valkyrie's daughter."

"Lady Valkyrie." Motoki murmured to himself. He gasped for air, clutching his chest as memories of the Jovian warrior slammed into him the longer he gazed at the child.

_

* * *

_

"_This is the mighty Prince Cadeyrn of Sol." He stopped as a brunette stepped out between two of the white pillars, her arms across over her green-tunic covered chest. The tunic billowed down to her upper-thigh, where a pair of tight black wool trousers molded the muscles in her thighs and legs before they were covered by strappings and a pair of brown leather boots at her feet._

_He rose an eyebrow. "I am afraid I do not recollect claiming to be so mighty, Lady…"_

_She tilted her head slightly, making her ponytail brush the edge of one of her shoulders. "Ah, that is correct. You have not been to this kingdom for many a year. Lady Valkyrie of Jupiter, at your service milord." Distantly, he noted that she did not give a customary curtsey or bow as she introduced herself. Instead, she began to walk around him slowly. "Your cousin has said you spent the time away training. She seems to believe you can make the stars obey your whims, you are so mighty."_

_He stood his ground as she stopped in front of him. "And what cousin may that be, my lady?"_

"_Serenity." She shook her head, smirking. "I must disagree with the Crown-Princess, however. You would not survive a Jovian winter."_

_He pursed his lips at the slight. "I dare not think you would either, given how you are garbed." His gaze slid down to the flash of skin he could see down the sides of her tunic; there was a woven tablet belt closing the material just below her breasts but it was open from there until the sewing line began at her waist. Only the belt and the broaches that held together both halves of her tunic on either shoulder kept the woman's modesty. A Jovian would never wear such a flimsy garment on their stormy planet._

_His eyes flew upwards in shock as his jawbone was roughly seized and pulled upwards. "My eyes, _milord_," Valkyrie squeezed her grip warningly. "are upon my face."_

_He scowled, jerking his face out of her grip. "You presume that you are worthy enough to gaze upon?" He asked surly, refusing to rub the feeling back into his chin like he wished to._

"_Does His Highness not enjoy the company of women, then?" She smirked. "For I know it is not myself."_

"_You are so sure?" He met her gaze fiery, glaring daggers at her._

_Her smirk only widened as she rose a calm eyebrow. "A hint of a temper. I commend the restraint you have upon it, Prince Cadeyrn; your sister has a similar hold over hers. Perhaps it is the Venusian blood flowing in your veins that dilutes it so." Her eyes flashed with an emotion he could not catch. "If only Serenity would allow her own temper to show, then all would be well."_

_His eyes narrowed. "Are you in a habit of speaking about your Crown-Princess so familiarly? Do you dare call the heiress on Jupiter simply Thrúd?"_

_Her face slacked as her amusement disappeared. "You know nothing, Prince Cadeyrn, so I suggest you watch your tongue. You do not understand what has been transpiring in this kingdom, furthermore what has been happening to your very own cousin. As for the Jovian heiress? Of course I do not call her Thrúd." She smirked again but this time the action was cruel. "I call her sister." He fought to keep the blanch off his face but she must have seen it because she laughed. "You do not intimidate me, Your Highness. My father is, I dare say, the most intimidating man that most in this entire Alliance has ever come across."_

"_A daughter of Thor." He murmured, almost in disbelief._

"_Indeed." Her fierce green eyes narrowed. "You are nowhere near a Jovian warrior's training, _milord_, yet I will concede that it is obvious you have been trained more thoroughly than the halfwits that form this kingdom's defense. If I find you harm Serenity, you will have made an enemy out of a daughter of Thor. As well as one of your cousin's own guard." His unspoken question was answered as a flash of light lit the pillars green and Sailor Jupiter stood before him. She dipped her head in a mocking bow, the wrist of the hand over her heart encircled with lightning. "Good day, Prince Cadeyrn. I hope you take care to remember all that I have said."_

_He could only blanch further as he looked down to see swirls of lightning disappear in each step behind her as she walked away._

_-----------------------------------------------------------------------------_

"_You and my sister are partaking in a dangerous game."_

_Valkyrie eyed Cadeyrn out of the corner of her eye, a glass of pink wine in one of her hands. "Pardon?"_

_He stood beside her regally, clothed in formal attire like all the others present. Officially, the ball marked the beginning of the delegation and celebrated what had already been accomplished this past week. Unofficially, it marked the celebration for the end of the Terrans' visit. "The gowns adorning Áine and yourself do not match the others."_

_She smirked, lifting the glass to her lips. "We are much too old to be playing games."_

_He said nothing as he followed her gaze out to where Serenity and the Terran Prince Endymion were dancing near the center of the room. It was obvious that they were speaking but it was impossible to hear of what through all the merriment and music. His brow knitted together as Serenity laughed, the sound audible to his ears and --a quick glance to all the guardians-- them as well. "Someone needs to intervene." He stated as his eyes darted to the dais where Queen Selenity sat. Her face was expressionless as always but he could see the tense set of her shoulders from where he was halfway across the room._

_Valkyrie glanced over at the queen as well as she sipped her wine. "You are concerned over a mother's anxiety?" She smirked over the rim of the glass. "I am afraid that no one will intervene for they have only been dancing a few moments. It is courtesy, after all, to entertain the Crown-Princess with a dance."_

_His eyes narrowed as the music began to soften with the coming end of the present dance. "Then I shall follow the same curtsey." He began to walk toward the duo before he paused and looked over his shoulder. "You and my sister may be too old to play games but that does not mean you two do not enjoy it. Be careful of who you chose to insult, my lady. It may have disastrous results."_

_She merely smiled, raising the glass in acknowledgement to his words._

_---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------_

_It had been two nights now since he had arrived at the Terran castle. Two nights since he had learned his cousin and the Terran Prince --no, the _**King**_-- had married. Two nights since he had told those gathered of the Queen's imminent declaration of war if her daughter was not returned home. Cadeyrn ran a tired hand through his hair as he headed toward the rooms that had been provided for him. Dinner had been a tense, silent affair after the news had been delivered that a party would be journeying to Lunaria at first sun in the morning. He himself would be returning to Sol to await a sign that he was needed on the Moon._

"_This is not wise. We must be there to protect our King."_

"_What do you propose I do then, Nephrite?" The Solarian prince paused at the familiar voice. Lady Valkyrie …speaking with one of the Terran generals? Understanding dawned his eyes. _'Ah, that is correct. The generals had been told they would not be departing to Lunaria with the expedition.' _How could he have forgotten? The men had protested, then all but Lord Kunzite had stormed out of the room when King Endymion told them that it was not a suggestion but rather an order. One they had no choice but to obey._

"_You must convince your Princess that this will be an ill-fated voyage if there is not enough bodies to protect her and the King."_

_Cadeyrn held his breath as he finally caught sight of the duo on the landing halfway up the stairs, partially hidden by the stone indention that led to a large window. Valkyrie was facing away from him, to the general. "If I held any sway over Serenity," The Jovian retorted, "she would not have fled to this planet. She would have fought against her opposition where she was the safest. On Lunaria."_

_Nephrite smiled and touched the woman's shoulder rather intimately. "If she had not fled, we would not have found one another. Neither would she have found her husband in Endymion. How can you regret such happenings?"_

'I do not believe I should be watching.' _Cadeyrn thought nervously. What he had thought was a conference between protectors was rapidly turning into a secret liaison between a daughter of Thor and a Terran general. Which was certainly not his business, nor his concern. He watched Valkyrie began to touch Nephrite's cheek in return before she sighed and allowed her hand to drop. "I never spoke of regret." She looked away. "Yet you know as well as I do that this should not have happened. None of this."_

"_That speaks of regret to me."_

_Her head snapped back to the mahogany-haired man, seeing a small scowl on his face. "That is not--"_

_Nephrite held up a hand to silence her retort. He took a few steps back and bowed deeply, a bow of a soldier to a king's daughter. "Good-night, Lady Valkyrie. I wish your voyage in the morrow fairs well." With that, he walked up the steps and even before he disappeared around the corner, Valkyrie hissed a fierce Jovian curse and punched the stone wall beside her. Not even a few seconds later, her back hit the wall and she groaned, sliding down to draw her legs against her chest and bury her face in them._

_The Solarian prince winced, taking a few steps back._ 'Most certainly not my business.' _"You are cowardice if you chose to flee from such a sight." Her voice came instantly, stopping him in his tracks cold. "I have no qualms with you witnessing."_

"_You did not join the evening meal." He stated as he walked back to the stairs and looked up. She stayed silent, so he slowly began to climb the steps to eventually stop beside her slumped form. "King Endymion declared the intention to travel to Lunaria to resolve the issue. To show that neither he nor anyone else kidnapped Serenity."_

"_I knew what the final decision would be once you spoke of the threat." She sent him a shadow of a smirk. "I am afraid that this is not an issue that will be resolved so easily, Your Highness. You will finally have the chance to show me that you were not as terribly trained as I believe you to be."_

"_Hmm." He pursed his lips, hesitating, before sitting a respectable distance away from her. "Do you truly believe we will go to war?"_

"_No." She whispered, "We will not simply be going to war. We shall be starting it."_

"_You are so sure?" He asked, repeating the words from their eventful first meeting. Only this time they did not hold an ounce of the same venom._

_She laughed almost bitterly, glancing at him from the corner of her eye. "Most sure. While the meal was going on, I was studying schematics of the Lunarian palace Albreda has stored away on her computer." She sighed suddenly, her eyes going distant as she glanced up to where Nephrite disappeared. "I could not seem to stop my mind from wandering, however, and I sought to look out at the darkened sky…"_

_Cadeyrn's brow furrowed as he glanced in the direction the Jovian was looking in. "Do you love him?"_

"_Is His Highness offended by the emotion?" Her head gained a curious tilt as she looked back at him. "You should not be. Your people wallow in its carefree quality as if it is needed as one needs to breathe." She smirked. "No. I forget that for Venusians it is."_

_He closed his eyes, letting his head rest against the stone behind him. "I am afraid that I do not consider myself Venusian, milady. I did not dwell on the planet for long."_

"_Your sister and yourself are sometimes so similar." She murmured, almost to herself, "She did not want to be told she was Venusian either. When it was decided that she would be named the guardian from Venus and not Sol as I know she secretly longed for, I had thought she accepted. Accepted that she did not have a say in who gave life. That, while being Sailor Venus would be a constant reminder of the heritage she did not wish for, it would have been the only way to properly protect Serenity from…" She trailed off. "In the end, it seems as if she could not accept what she is since she has forsaken the true Sailor Venus post."_

_Cadeyrn strummed his fingers against a thigh of his black trousers thoughtfully. He himself had often wondered what the present conditions would be if Áine had grown up on Sol with him and their father. He feared it would have simply given her more training and more power to go along with that training. Yet, no matter what he was told, he could not believe his sister was a traitor. Not until he saw it with his own eyes._

"…_I would not have hesitated in marrying him, if he had asked." Valkyrie whispered after a few moments, startling the Solarian prince out of his thoughts. "If that is love, then I am guilty of it."_

"_Yet even I, arriving only days before, know the castle is afloat with the hearsay that he will not." She said nothing but he could see the grip she had around her knees tighten. She had heard similar talk as well, it seemed. "Then I say be the one to ask him, milady."_

_Her eyes flew up to him, shocked. "Such a thing is unheard of."_

_He allowed a small smirk to play on his lips. "You would allow that would stop you?" He paused, his eyes narrowing thoughtfully. "If you truly desire to be married, that is."_

_She stared at him for a few minutes, almost bringing herself to nod, before the current circumstances came to the forefront of her mind. She sighed, dropping her head against the wall. "There is simply no time. Even if he agreed to wed so late, I will only leave him to be a widower. I know it as well as I know that this situation cannot be remedied with courtly words and bows."_

"_Such certainly." He mused, "You speak as if you are preparing your burial."_

"_Jovians do not bury their dead." She retorted quietly, before shaking her head. "I am not planning my death. I… wish to live, to see Nephrite again. Yet I still cannot deny the outcome I know will be upon us." She closed her eyes. "I feel a great storm approaching. It thunders with the foretelling of massacre."_

"_If you are so sure," He replied slowly, "that you would leave him to be a widower, then why is it you sit with me?" Her gaze swung to him curiously but he stayed staring down at his lap. "Go to him. Spend the time that is certain with the man that you love."_

_She gazed at him as a smile slowly blossomed on her face. "You speak true." She eagerly got to her feet and frantically brushed off her garbs of any unsightliness. She only uttered a simple "Thank you." over her shoulder before rushing up the steps without another word._

_He watched her go, a crease in his brow all the while._

_--------------------------------------------------------------_

_Cadeyrn smiled as he watched a man spin the woman who was obviously his wife around in a circle, kissing her brow. "She is safe!" She shouted out joyously, doing a combination of laughing and crying as she hugged back her husband. "Praise Selene! Our Princess is safe!"_

'Yes. Serenity is safe and there will be no war against Terra.' _He thought to himself, relieved, as he continued past the couple and weaved through the crowd. Everyone had erupted into celebration when the Queen had announced that her daughter had returned home, miraculously safe and unharmed. During the same announcement, it was decreed that a grand ball would be held at the end of the week in honor of Serenity's return and an invitation was sent to all the nobility and officials of the Alliance. Three days later, he was here on Lunaria with the festivities. His brow furrowed as he caught sight of a familiar woman before smiling as he reached her side. "Have you and the Terran general made amends?"_

_Valkyrie glanced over at the Solarian prince with a raised eyebrow. "Was the display the morning we departed not telling enough?" She smirked. "They do say sin is always the sweetest way to live and we most certainly sinned." She laughed heartily as he choked at her bluntness, a blush engulfing his face. "I would say I was merely joking yet I'm afraid I cannot."_

_He coughed, hurriedly turning his attention away from her dancing eyes. "Yes, well…" He trailed off, unable to think of a suitable response._

_She laughed harder, thumping him on the back. "You are not so very bad after all, Your Highness." _

_He glanced at her, the blush gone in favor of a genuine smile. "You are not terrible either, milady. I regret we did not chose to be nicer to one another."_

"_You did not enjoy our unique acquaintance?" She smiled widely before it dimmed as she glanced up at the grand balcony to see her princess and her princess's husband appearing in the doorway. "Perhaps in the next life we will have another chance to know one another, for I did not regret our interactions." She murmured as a hush began to lull over the crowd, the Crown-Princess not having to speak a word._

_He frowned, an unexplainable panic beginning to form in his chest as he followed her gaze to the couple. "What is happening?"_

_Her smile became sad and wistful but she didn't say a word as Serenity began speaking. "Citizens of this grand Silver Alliance, I beseech you to hear my words. I have stood before you many a time as your Crown-Princess…"_

_Cadeyrn looked at the woman beside him in horror, finally noticing she wore a mixture of her protector uniform and the armor of her people. Her smile faded as she glanced at him. "Until our next life, Prince Cadeyrn, because I am afraid that this one will soon be over. Very soon indeed." He stood speechless as a single tear rolled down Valkyrie's cheek as they listened to his cousin's words._

_

* * *

_

The next time Motoki was aware of the present, he was lying out on a sofa with three men and a small child hovering over him. His attention immediately fixated on the girl, his eyes taking in her familiar features. "Oh, Sol." He whispered as his eyes slid up to her father, "She really _was _Makoto like Endymion said but she…" He stopped as the men all shook their heads vehemently, their eyes darting to Rose frantically. With sudden clarity he realized she didn't know about her mother's death so, lamely, he continued with a, "And she threatened me the first time she saw me then, too…"

Unexpectedly, Nephrite laughed boisterously. "I think she's threatened everyone in this room at _least _once."

"Except for your daughter, of course." Zoisite added dryly, blinking incredulously as his friend only laughed harder and nodded his head. "She threatened Rose?"

"You guys _couldn't _hear the screams coming out of the delivery room? Sure, most of them were aimed at me, but there were still things like 'you better be an angel when you're out of there, kid, or else I'll never change your diaper!'. 'If you're not a black belt by age seven, I'll blah-blah-blah'." Nephrite chuckled. "Empty threats, of course, but still threats."

Motoki watched blankly as the generals all laughed together. This was probably the most crucial time to do _anything _worthwhile for their cause and they were sitting around _joking_!? He scowled. "What is _wrong _with all of you?" He asked harshly as he pinned them with a glare. They looked at him stunned, as did Rose who'd just returned to her place on the carpet, but he didn't care. "How can you sit in here merrily while there is an unstable Endymion-Darien _hybrid _running around the city doing Sol _knows _what!?"

Jadeite felt his mouth open and close a few times in disbelief. "Hybrid…?"

The blonde sighed as all the adrenaline ran out of his body. It had probably been an emotional charge from his new memories; he sure felt emotionally zapped now. "Yes. Hybrid. You called me over for a reason, right? Well, guess what. Something _did _happen to Serena and it caused Endymion to emerge out of Darien that same night. She fainted at the arcade and I ended up taking her to the hospital."

All the men leaned forward, their anger replaced by curiosity and worry. "What do you mean 'emerge out of Darien' and 'hybrid'?" Nephrite questioned.

Motoki ran a ran over his face. "Exactly what it sounds like. One second it'd be Darien, the next it would be Endymion with his gold eyes…" He shivered at the memory. "Man, those are freaky."

Jadeite gasped and leaned forward more. "I know, right!? I swear, they looked like they wanted to start glowing or something when Serenity screamed yesterday. Free-_kay_."

The arcade worker frowned. "What do you mean--?"

"Cut the chitchat." Zoisite interrupted, still somewhat peeved by Motoki's earlier reprimand. "Finish telling us what happened when Serena fainted. Start at the beginning so we understand."

"Please." Nephrite added, sending his temporary brown-haired friend a glare.

Motoki frowned but did as requested. "She'd fainted when, as I was later told by the Endymion-Darien hybrid, she saw Jupiter's …death… on the news." He sent a worried glance to the said woman's husband but the man's face was carefully stoic. "Not long before, my sister had run over a man on the sidewalk and Darien and I had brought him inside and called his wife. When Mrs. Taiko arrived--" Nephrite blinked in surprise, remembering the name from his meeting. "--I helped her husband out to her car and when I came back, Darien was examining Serena. He told me she'd reopened the injury on her back."

Zoisite jumped on the information. "So it was preexisting? And Endymion knew about it?"

"Well, _Darien _did." Motoki corrected, "There's no telling how much Endymion knows about recent events. Anyways, he kept refusing to tell me what happened and I just kept getting angrier and demanding I had a right to know. After awhile he left to get Serena some medical supplies but here's the weird thing. He told me not to take her to any hospital. No matter _what_." The generals frowned suspiciously. "After he left, I went to ask a coworker something only to return to the backroom to find Serena in some kinda convulsion or something. She was thrashing around, crying out in pain, and her temperature was _dangerously _high. In the end, she fainted _again _and I rushed her to the hospital. By that time her back had started bleeding pretty moderately too. Began to soak through the jacket wrapped around her."

Jadeite's brow furrowed as he went through a list of poison side effects stored away in his mind. "Bleeding injuring of unknown origin on her back. Short convulsion. Escalated temperature. Fell unconscious. Anything else? Shortness of breath, perhaps?"

Motoki nodded. "Yes; shivering and breathing heavily, too." He winced suddenly. "As I was on my way to the freeway, Darien caught sight of me and ended up following on his motorcycle. That was my first run-in with Endymion, or at least the gold eyes, that night. He ordered me --_Cadeyrn_-- to stop. I managed to elude him, getting Serena admitted to the emergency room, before hurrying outside to stop him from coming inside in case he decided to threaten everyone. When he caught up to me in the parking lot, he, well--"

"Beat the sh--" Jadeite stopped abruptly with a wince, his eyes darting over to Rose. "_Stuffing _out of you?"

"Yeah." The blonde laughed. "I should say _they _beat the stuffing out of me, though. It really seemed like he was a hybrid. He went from one personality to the other the whole time. In the end, I told Endymion he was the biggest danger for Serenity--" The others groaned in dismay and Jadeite slapped his forehead. "--then he threatened to kill me, tripped me with tree roots, and walked off. I was too dazed and exhausted to follow because memories slammed into me. Thanks _so much _for telling me Serenity was my cousin, by the way." He added sarcastically, "Seriously, you guys couldn't even give me a _hint _who she was to me?"

"Not allowed to." Zoisite shrugged. "You know how Commander is with forced memories. Everything has to come naturally. So, what day was that? How long was Serenity in the hospital?"

"The fourteenth. She'd been in the hospital until that Friday…"

"The day before I ran into her." Nephrite murmured, "So all that was happening when Commander called me to tell me about Jupiter…" He shook his head and looked back at the former Prince. "Do you know what the doctors diagnosed Serena with? Did she tell you by any chance?"

"_Actually_," Motoki began with a self-satisfied grin, "both Darien and I were permitted to stay in the room when her parents were informed of her diagnosis." The generals rose their eyebrows; their luck just kept getting better and better. "Apparently while the Darien-Endymion hybrid and I were fighting, she'd been admitted into the ICU as a precaution. She'd been unresponsive to any attempts to awaken her but there was something else, too. The doctor said they'd found multiple _deliberately _placed injuries on her body. The wound on her back that had been pulled open and bleeding was the most serious one. It stretched from her lower shoulder to her lower back diagonally." All the men shared a wince. "The doc' said that wound, as well as two smaller ones on her stomach, had been stitched _previously_. Then he went on to say there were a lot of bruises and cuts covering most of her body but they were _already _healing and fading."

"Which implies they'd been there for a good duration of time." Jadeite commented, "Or Endymion had escalated her healing with his power." His gaze narrowed curiously. "Before you said he was studying to be a doctor, correct?" Motoki nodded, making the general nod to himself. "Then it was probably him, making him the one to also stitch the injuries."

Nephrite frowned. "Is there any possibility her parents had placed the injuries on her?"

Motoki shook his head vehemently. "No. The Tsukinos are good people. The doctor, actually, all but right-out asked if they had injured their daughter. That's when Darien suddenly jumped in with an explanation. She'd been caught up in a youma attack; she'd gone to him for help because she knew he aspired to be a doctor. She refused to be checked into a hospital to avoid worrying her parents and he said he agreed to help her because that was the only way he knew she'd been looked after."

"Something's off with that story." Jadeite suddenly declared. "It's too…"

"_Careful_." Zoisite finished for him. "The only witnesses would be the Senshi but since it's impossible for the general masses to question them, it's Endymion and Serenity's word against pretty much nothing. I'm not saying it's _not _a possibility, but I don't think that's what actually happened. It's what they fell back on. " His eyes narrowed thoughtfully. "What else happened with the doctor?"

"Besides all that, he claimed Serena went hysterical and they were forced to sedate her." Motoki added with a grimace, "She'd been asking for her parents, the Senshi, and --of course-- Endymion."

Nephrite rose an eyebrow. "Which may have brought on that hybrid-ness you encountered that night."

"My thoughts exactly." The blonde nodded, scratching his head lightly. "So that was about it. Doc' said testing showed she was suffering from exhaustion and slight dehydration. But," He frowned uneasily. "he _also _said he and his colleagues had found an unknown agent in her bloodstream that none of them had ever seen before. She was put under observation for testing."

Jadeite smirked, leaning back in his chair. "Bingo." His expression fell and he winced. "Shit. That means Serena _is _being poisoned."

Motoki jaw dropped as he surged to his feet, his chair falling behind him. "She's being _WHAT!?_"

* * *

Two hours after Gym, Serena and Ami met in-between the Non-Fiction Science and Biographies rows of the library; the dustiest place to be but guaranteed the least visited and most private. For ten minutes, they'd hugged and squealed --well, Serena squealed while Ami would smile and chuckle-- and relished in speaking to one another after such a long time apart. Once they'd calmed down, they sat side by side to share their lunches and update each other on what had been happening in their lives recently.

"Serena," Ami began hesitantly, "have you seen Minako lately, by any chance?"

The blonde frowned as she glanced at her friend. "No. I've been in the hospital or at home most of this last week. Remember?"

"Yes, of course. That's right." The blunette pursed her lips before sighing. "I wonder where she is then."

"She's _missing_?"

Ami looked at the wide-eyed look fixated on her before beginning to shake her head. "No." She paused, nodding slightly instead. "I suppose it's always a possibility. All I know is that she hasn't come to any recent Senshi meetings. She appeared at the youma battle Friday night but not the meeting earlier in the day. Nor the one Sunday. She has been acting very… peculiar, truthfully."

Her companion's brow furrowed. "What do you mean?"

She frowned, picking at her salad distractedly. "Since Princess Serenity found us, Minako seems to have… _withdrawn_. At least mentally. Before Friday, she had been at every meeting dutifully but never said a word unless directly spoken to. I am almost certain I have spotted her glaring at the Princess and Luna even. Yet I cannot understand why." She looked up at her friend only for her frown to become concerned as she saw the girl wincing. "Serena? Is something wrong?"

"N--no…"

"I don't think you will ever be very good at lying." Ami commented wryly before sighing. "Please, Serena, you can trust me with anything. I hold the same faith in you."

"C-could you tell me what Luna looks like as a human? Please?" The blonde forced a smile on her face as Ami narrowed her eyes curiously. "I--I promised to stay away from everyone, right? I've been thinking that I should probably know what she looks now so I could avoid her, too."

The bluenette pursed her lips again. "I… suppose that is true." She shook her head as she went into detail.

And Serena paled with each word. The yellow and black dress, the double odango-ed hair, the crescent moon insignia. It was all _exactly _the same as she remembered. She bit her lip. _'S--she tried to kill me. Luna really tried to kill me because my broach almost killed her. Because it thought she was __**me**__.' _She glowered suddenly. _'I hate when Darien is right.'_

"Serena?"

She flinched at the question in that one word. "I, uh, was just wondering why Luna would have a crescent moon on her forehead is all." It was somewhat true, she justified herself mentally; she _would _have wondered that, eventually. "And--and odangoes too. Do you think all Lunarians had them?"

Ami winced as her eyes slid up to her friend's hair. She probably shouldn't say it but she felt she needed to know… "The Princess--" She paused, trying to think of a way to say it gently only to find she couldn't. "--she said that the hairstyle, the 'odangoes', are actually something called the 'Lunarian Royal Hairstyle'. Only those in her _**family **_are permitted to wear them. It is the same with the crescent insignia, expect they are born with that."

The blonde had long since frozen in shock. "W-what? Then--" She shook her head in disbelief. "then why did Sailor Moon wear odangoes? Why have _I _worn them most of my life?"

"I would suppose that Sailor Moon had that particular hairstyle because she was, I dare say, the _symbol _of the Moon and what the Senshi were sworn to protect: the Lunarian Princess." Ami bit her lip. "However since said princess claimed no Sailor Moon should exist--" She cleared her throat. "I am unsure of why you would wear the hairstyle as a civilian. How long before becoming Sailor Moon did you begin to?"

"I started wearing the odangoes," Serena frowned, struggling to think back, "when my brother was born, actually. _Long _before Sailor Moon." She nodded as Ami gazed at her in shock. "I was at the hospital with my dad and it was like this feeling suddenly over came me and I saw them in my mind. I just _had _to wear them; I insisted on it right then and there and everyday after. My parents thought it was some kind of rebellion for losing attention to my new brother. After while though, it'd just become a habit and none of us really thought about it. It had become my hairstyle, my signature …but I guess it's not anymore…" She looked down, her thoughts running through her mind so fast she couldn't quite catch all of them. One kept standing out, however. "Luna isn't some Lunarian royal too, is she? If only those of royalty can have all that…"

"Princess Serenity claimed that Luna is rather Luna, _Lady _of Tranquility." Ami giggled at her friend's jaw dropped. "I agree. Luna isn't very tranquil. Yet the Princess claimed her mother, Queen Selenity, gave Luna a title, and thus a crescent moon and the right to wear the odangoes, because her tranquility was, and I quote, 'the only thing that kept her sane during the princess's younger years'." She giggled again. "If that is true, I think Luna has lost more than her memories all these years."

"I think so too." Serena giggled before sobering up. "Queen Selenity. What do you think she was like? She must have loved her daughter so much to sacrifice herself the way she did."

"The Princess doesn't speak of her much." The bluenette supplied, "She has said that Queen Selenity was a magnificent woman. A true queen and perhaps the best one Lunaria ever had. Other than that, however… I think it saddens her to think of her mother. That she will never see her again since her self-sacrifice was so consuming and chances are highly unlikely she will ever be reincarnated."

Serena placed her elbow on her knee and then her chin in upturned palm. "So, Princess Serenity pretended to be Makoto's mother and they 'moved away' to explain her …you-know-what. And Minako has been acting strange. Anything else interesting happen, or are Rei and Luna still just fawning over the princess?"

Ami rolled her eyes. "They are. Endlessly. It's nothing short of ridiculous some meetings. To be honest, I am surprised Princess Serenity hasn't reprimanded them for hovering as they do. Yet, she never seems to mind. She takes it all with this poise and elegance she has about her."

Serena nodded, her eyes far away. "I would imagine she had to become accustomed to all the attention; it was probably the only way to not go crazy. All the flocking courtiers and having no real privacy or time to herself, it all comes with the territory of being a sovereign. Then there were the Senshi. To protect her properly, that had to have meant at least one was always accompanying her at any given time and the others stationed not very far away. You know, in case something went wrong."

"Very true." Ami smiled proudly, nodding, before her eyes narrowed moments later. "Now it's your turn. I want to know why you have changed your hairstyle. And not the excuse you gave everyone else, either. I want to know the real reason."

"…I'm worried." The blonde winced, rubbing her forehead. "I was with Darien yesterday and, well, we were being ourselves and ran into a woman's cart on the sidewalk. To make a long story short, she said someone who imitated Sailor Moon's hairstyle must be as rotten as her. Then she said I even _looked _like her."

"Oh, no. You don't think the glimmer…"

Serena nodded somberly. "I think it's beginning to fade since I'm not Sailor Moon anymore." She hesitated for a second. "There's something else, too. My family… they _know_…"

Ami gasped, her eyes widening in disbelief. "They recognized the similarities too?"

"Kinda. I think I pushed it along, though. I just-- I walked in while they were watching the news and the footage was the battle Jupiter died in. It was the same thing that that woman was watching when Darien and I ruined her belongings. My dad said something and I was just so wound up from earlier and scared the woman had realized who I used to be and so guilty that Makoto had died because I wasn't there that day. I--I just snapped and said something. The next thing I know, they know and I'm running up the stairs and c-cutting my hair…" Serena hadn't realized she'd started to cry until Ami hurriedly placed down her lunch and pulled her into a hug.

"You have nothing to feel guilty over, Serena." The bluenette whispered, "You couldn't have known what would happen. What Jupiter chose to do. It--it was just fate. If _anyone _is to blame, it's the Dark Kingdom."

The blonde nodded, accepting the words, but her tears still didn't stop for a long while. When the bell finally rang to go to class, she had barely touched her lunch and her face was still hot and red. Ami escorted her to class, watching over her like a mother hen with hawk eyes, before being forced to race to her own class. And all the while she was glad to have a friend in the petite genius even more.

* * *

"Shit! Shit! Shit!"

Nephrite paled with his repeated expletive his daughter uttered happily, clapping all the way. "No, no. That isn't a good word to say, sweetie. Okay?" He asked anxiously as he knelt down in front of the girl where she still sat on the carpet beside her backpack and the contents of his wallet.

Rose frowned but less than a second later, it became a bright smile. "Shit!"

"I'm going to kill you for this, Jed." Her father hissed as he threw a dark glare over his shoulder to the table of men as he stood up.

Jadeite smiled sheepishly as he watched Nephrite kiss the girl on the head before he walked back to the table. He didn't bother to try to hide the amusement swimming in his eyes, however. "Okay. Just let me see Bellona one last time. Sound fair?"

The American general's glare only darkened. "Don't think she can save you." His eyes brightened suddenly as he sat down. "No. Wait. I have a better idea."

Jadeite swallowed nervously as a positively malicious smile stretched over his friend's face. "W-what is it?" His only answer was a evil chuckle that sent a chill down his spine.

Motoki swung his head from where Jadeite sat at his left, to where Nephrite sat at his right, to where Zoisite sat in front of him, before repeating the process frantically. "There--there's a _poison _inside each of the senshi!?" He gaped as they all winced but nodded slowly.

"Well, we're not _positive _it exists." Jadeite couldn't help but point out, since it was _his _theory. "It's just that, you said the doctors had found an unknown agent in Serena's bloodstream and Darien had said something about her being poisoned while Zoi and I were eavesdropping on them in the park yesterday… _Technically_, the poison is only hypothetical at this point."

"But… but if it's _true_," Motoki stuttered disbelievingly, "that this elimination signal has been given for Serena because she made a 'wrong move' or whatever, the only reason she's still _alive _is because Lady Luna somehow got a hold of her transformation broach and it attacked _her _instead. And--and this might all happen to my _sister _too, except she might _die_ if she's not as lucky as Serenity was?"

Zoisite cringed, remembering the man didn't know about the development he and the others had learned yesterday. "There's something else you should know." He said carefully as he shared a glance with his comrades, "…Yesterday morning Nephrite found Áine searching through Val-- _Makoto's _apartment. We were called over and eventually discovered something."

"What?" Motoki asked uneasily, the men's expressions slowly wearing away at his nerves. "What did you discover?"

Nephrite's gaze slid over to his daughter, making the former Sol Prince follow his path. "She was pregnant," He whispered as he met Motoki's eyes. "with Kunzite's child. We think that's the reason she chose the side she did. It'd been killed and she was blackmailed with the thought she had _allowed _it to be."

"A… nephew?" The blonde murmured, his eyes sliding back to Rose involuntarily. "Or a niece?" He shook his head after a moment and looked back at the generals. "I don't understand."

'_Well, when a man and woman love each other…'_ Jadeite hurriedly suppressed his smile; he wasn't _that _heartless. "We don't completely understand either, Cadeyrn." He said instead, "We just know it's true because of the way she reacted when Nephrite asked. She completely broke down into tears, then pretty much kicked our butts before fleeing. Does that sound like we were _wrong_?"

"No…" Motoki breathed disbelievingly. Was that the secret that forced Minako to go bad? A child killed? _Her _child? And the killer… His eyes widened. Dear Sol, he'd told Valkyrie that their games may have disastrous consequences! And this--this was the _worst_ consequence! A _child!_ "And you're sure it was Kunzite's child as well?" He asked slowly, his mind whirling. That would have been another reason it would have been killed; a child from the union of a Terran-ized Lunarian and a half-Solarian. She would have considered it the biggest smear in the Silver Millennium's existence…

Zoisite frowned as he watched the horror shining in Cadeyrn's eyes. "We assume so. She never said otherwise and it makes sense with what we figured yesterday…" His eyes narrowed. "What are you thinking? Do you know something?"

"I… I just don't understand why I didn't see it." Motoki murmured, "I should have known she had a good reason; not that it was just a passing whim to join the other side. Of course it had to be something monumental to go against Serenity…"

"Don't feel bad." Nephrite smiled sadly. "We've all been a bunch of real idiots. This pregnancy, Bellona and Rei, me knowing about Jupiter was with the Senshi, why Kunz's AWOL-ed. There's a ton of stuff we should have known but _didn't_. Which makes us figuring out what is happening right _now _even more important. We need to figure out whether this poison is real or not as soon as possible. And if it damaged the Silver Imperial Crystal." His eyes strayed down to said crystal. Cadeyrn had only said that it wasn't suspicious for it to have followed its master --weren't the generals following theirs right now? Why would it be any different? But if Zoisite was right about that broach being specifically designed for Serenity, then how had the crystal gotten _inside_?

Motoki's head snapped up suddenly. "Oh, Sol. I just remembered something. Serena had abruptly visited some sick relatives down in Kyoto and when I say abrupt I mean no one got even a five-_minute _notice. One day she was there, the next nowhere. She returned just as abruptly. And the first day I saw her back was _also _the first day I'd seen the gold in Darien's eyes. He'd been _furious _with Rei. He shattered a mug in his hand, remember? I called you two."

"Not long before Zoi told me he'd seen Bell-- _Rei_." Jadeite nodded as he thought back. "We 'casually' met Darien the next day. His hands had been almost completely healed and I _knew _he was Endymion. I looked at him and suddenly this grainy, unfocused memory I'd always had of him cleared up in an instant."

"Same with me." Zoisite shrugged. "The healed hands only solidified what his appearance showed us: Endymion in the reincarnated flesh."

"Ditto." Nephrite added, "Seen him from the elevator and thought I was hallucinating until Rose shouted out a hello. Boy was I stupefied when I learned he was my neighbor. That grainy memory sure cleared up fast, though." He shook himself out of his memories. "Why was he furious with Rei? She do anything to him, say anything?"

"That's the thing." Motoki scratched the back of his head. "He'd probably never said more than two sentences to her, despite all her batting eyelashes." Jadeite's cringe went unnoticed. "The thing I recalled though, was that Serena left the fourth and didn't come back until the _twelfth_. The story was that she came down with the illness her family had."

"So…?" Zoisite asked, at a loss.

"_So_," The arcade worker smiled. "guess who'd been 'sick' three days beforehand, too? So sick he hadn't even noticed it had been raining nonstop." He fought the urge to roll his eyes as they all continued to stare at him blankly. "Okay, let me create a mental picture for you. Darien's pretty much indifferent to Rei until the twelfth, when he looks murderous the _second _she appears. When I correct Rei when she claims Serena is still in Kyoto sick, the mug he'd been clenching _shatters_ and his eyes start flashing between gold and his usual blue. Rei doesn't even _notice _his eyes because she's almost freaking out herself and there's this panicked undertone in her voice when she asks if I'm _sure _it was Serena. Not every BFF-like, right?"

"And Serena was hospitalized the fourteenth, only two days after." Jadeite realized, "A three-day sickness on Darien's behalf equals a lot of time to speed Serena's healing along and stitch any wounds she may have. Wounds claimed to be from a youma attack, which inadvertently makes the relative visit invalid because youmas have been solely concentrated in Tokyo since the Senshi appeared."

"So the question is what happened from the fourth onward?" Nephrite pondered. "Endymion would never _not _notice it was raining unless he was worried, or was involved in something big, and that sounds a lot like he'd been taking care of Serena to me. Which would place her in his care at least by the ninth, but that still leaves a grand total of five days she's uncalled for." He looked up at Cadeyrn broodingly. "Her parents didn't claim her missing or anything, did they?"

"No. Not a peep. Everyone thought she was taking care of family, then got sick herself." Motoki supplied, his eyes darting from one general to another. Strange; they sure could _act _and _think _like generals when the time called for it. There's wasn't an amused smile in this whole group.

"Interesting. A soundproof story that even her parents believe. Mysterious wounds. A worried Senshi, one that Endymion unexplainably suddenly hates." Zoisite narrowed his eyes in thought. "Darien had been looking at Áine oddly --almost suspiciously-- at the arcade too, remember? When she appeared and flaunted how she'd spoken with Commander."

Nephrite winced, vaguely remembering Jed and Zoi mentioning that to him. Commander had _a lot _of explaining to do when he finally did show up in Tokyo. "So, Endymion hates Rei and is suspicious of Áine. Sounds like something happened with the Senshi."

Motoki's head snapped over to the North American general disbelievingly. "You don't think they _harmed _Serena, do you? That _they _put those deliberate wounds on her!? If you think that, you're--"

"Bellona is in a _coma_, Cadeyrn." Jadeite reminded as he cut the man off mid-sentence, "And, while I hate to admit it, because of that there's seemingly no reason for Rei's existence. She could easily be a clone like we think those Dark Kingdom generals running around with our roguishly handsome faces are." He grinned before sobering up at the withering looks sent his way. "We have no clue what or who Rei is and because of that, she's a danger to _everyone_. You said it yourself when you told me she isn't the same as Bell was."

The arcade worker frowned. He _had _said that but that didn't mean he liked the idea of Rei --clone or not-- harming his cousin; Bellona and Serenity had been so close. "Fine, I have to agree that it _does _sound like something happened with the Senshi that didn't end so well for Serena but the poison still isn't fitting into the story. Anywhere."

"Timeline!" Zoisite abruptly declared, "When was the last battle Sailor Moon appeared?"

Jadeite leaned toward Cadeyrn with a grin. "Zoi's a sucker for timelines. I think it's a leftover from his exposure to Albreda's practical thinking."

"_Ignoring _that," The European general sent his amused friend a glare. "anyone have an answer?"

"Jupiter died the fourteenth, when Serena was hospitalized." Nephrite supplied wistfully, "Sailor Moon didn't appear at that battle or the one just before that, according to the news. That battle just happened to be the sixth, right in the middle of the days she's uncalled for."

Jadeite groaned. "That doesn't exactly tell us much though, does it? There's still no explanation for how, or when, Serena got hurt."

"I don't think she knew about the battles." Motoki looked at the generals wide-eyed. "When Áine ran over that man on the sidewalk, she'd been rushing to the battle Jupiter died in. She looked right _at _Serena but never said a word or gave any kind of sign." He shook his head. "The Senshi have this device, like a video communicator-type of thing. I'd seen them use it before. It's how they tell each other about the battles but no one called Serena. I'm positive of it, so now I'm starting to think she didn't have that communication with them, at least _anymore_.Because if Lady Luna had her transformation broach…"

"…what's to say she didn't have the rest of her Senshi belongings." Zoisite finished for him. "Brilliant!"

Jadeite leaned back over to the former Solarian prince. "Albreda said 'Brilliant!' too. I think he was infected more than I'd thought." He laughed as a pillow hit his face. "It's true!" He cried out defensively, "I'm just waiting for you to break out your PDA like she used to do that computer of hers!"

"Shove it, Jed." Nephrite said with an eye roll, "At least _they _know how to _use _a computer."

"I know how to use a computer!" Came the swift retort.

A smirk played on Zoisite's lips. "So tell me again why you came rushing into my rooms last year yelling that your computer was trying to eat you?" He sighed. "I never could figure out what you had done to it. Poor little buddy had to go to electronics heaven…"

Motoki hung his head as the men all laughed uproariously. Perhaps he'd thought too soon; they're weren't acting very 'general'-like right now. More like the class clowns. _'Where's the stern General Kunzite when he's needed?' _He mused to himself, _'He'd be able to keep them all in line. Maybe.'_ He sighed, cupping his hand in his upturned palm. "Hello, remember the _poison_?" He called, making them freeze, "We still need to either validate it or find a place for it in the timeline. We, also, don't know where to place Serena's belongings, or at least her transformation broach, being taken away. And none of you are incorporating a very important fact into any of this."

Nephrite blinked. "What's that?"

Motoki stared at them somberly. "If we're right and something happened with the Senshi, then it's significant that Darien hates _Rei _and is suspicious of Áine, or rather, _Minako._"

"He knows who the Senshi are now." Jadeite murmured in realization. "And that's not a good sign when Endymion has suddenly started emerging out of him. Based on what you told us about that night Serena fainted, Endymion has full memories and full power --it's almost like he's a separate being inside of Darien. A being with a grudge against Áine for harming Serenity. If Rei or any of the other Senshi harmed her, that means they're on his hit list now, too." He whistled low. "_Ouch_. Endymion can be a formidable enemy."

"I think his emergences are limited." Nephrite suggested, "I have a feeling that Darien subconsciously allows Endymion out, or he seeks power to do something and Endymion readily uses that window of opportunity to slip out. Like that fight you two had." He turned to Motoki. "You said you tried to stop him from going inside the hospital, right? Which means you were keeping him away from Serena. If Darien thought she was in danger, he would have wanted a way to get rid of the obstacle you were creating for him. Endymion has the capabilities of doing that. Or, maybe, when Endymion's emotions become so pronounced, he comes to the surface and overtakes Darien." He frowned. "Maybe a little bit of all that, actually…"

Motoki frowned as something occurred to him. "Endymion told me he could feel that Serenity need him through their connection. Then he went on to say that the connection was failing faster by the second and he needed to get to her to reestablish it, then he accused that of being the reason I was keeping him away. To make the connection fail. He made it sound like it was a tangible thing but I never heard of anything like that. Have any of you? You knew him better than I."

The generals looked at each other, their brows furrowed. "I don't think we ever have." Zoisite answered as he looked back at the blond. "But you just never know with them. They could have kept something from us. _Or _he was being melodramatic. He could have just she was dying again and it was freaking him out."

Jadeite smirked. "Endymion's not the melodramatic one. That's Neph."

"I resent that!" Said man snapped.

"No." The Far Eastern general retorted with a laugh, "You _represent _that."

Nephrite opened his mouth to shout back before snapping it shut. "Continuing on with Cadeyrn's thought," He gritted out, "none of us here have ever heard of them having some kind of connection besides marriage. _Yet_, that doesn't mean it _doesn't _exist, because I was thinking that if Serena was calling out for Endymion, that might have triggered his appearances, too." He sighed after a moment, rubbing his forehead. "But, still, all we're doing is throwing around theories and making up explanations. We need to _know _what's going on with something --_anything!_-- and not just go on guessing about it."

"I agree." Zoisite declared with a pensive frown. "I think it's time for a mission, gentlemen."

"Ooh, mission." Jadeite grinned toothily as he learned forward in his chair. "What's the objective?"

"Find out what the heck is up with this probable poison. Unfortunately the most likely candidate to test is Serenity." Zoisite grimaced. "I'm worried about Endymion's random appearances. We don't know what he'll do if he catches one of us trying to gather a sample of her blood and thinks we're the Dark Kingdom general…" He watched as the men all grimaced themselves. "Yeah. _Bad_. And Cadeyrn needs to keep that trusting friendship with him going so he can't do it either…"

"Her files!" Motoki eagerly jumped to his feet. "I stole a peek a Serena's medical chart when she was still in the hospital. I'd wanted to know what that 'unknown agent' in her bloodstream was but the only things about it were all these theories and statements that said that testing was required. I never got a chance to look at it _after _the testing was done and she was released, though."

Nephrite eyes narrowed. "Is it possible that some of her blood is still in storage or anything?"

Motoki thought about it for a minute before nodding. "It's a possibility. They were _that _curious about it so I don't think they'll dismiss it so easily." He blanched as one of the comments in the file flashed through his mind. It was a miracle he wasn't being reprimanded for not telling the generals about Serena's injuries but this… He cleared his throat. "There was something else in her file. Something that… eluded to Darien."

All of their eyes instantly snapped over to him. "What?" Zoisite asked suspiciously.

The blonde cleared his throat again. "There was a note from a Doctor… Rupert! That's what it was." He nodded to himself. "It said that Serena showed similarities to another patient that'd been there a number of years ago. Then it went on to say that the two _knew _one another. It has to be Darien because he'd been with Serena all week, giving the doctors plenty of time to notice him. And _remember _him." His brow creased as he contemplated how much to say. It was _Darien's _secret to tell, but then again, he was their _king _and with how protective they were of him, they probably knew anyways… "He's been an orphan since his parents were killed in an automobile accident when he was a child. To make that even worse, he has amnesia from the time he woke up after the accident downwards. He told me that he'd been sent from hospital to hospital for months."

"That doesn't make sense." Jadeite complained after a moment, "There's no possible way that this poison could have existed before Darien started being Tuxedo Mask. It'd make no sense… unless they'd _all _been born with that poison inside of them." He shook his head. "No. It can't be. The transformation devices are fail-safes, just like Zoi said yesterday. That's what the poison comes out of. I'm sure of it!"

"Well, there's only one way to find out." Zoisite stated, "We need to test someone's blood. Since Ami is the one in the most probable danger and I already know her…" _'Let's hope she won't hate me when this is all over.'_ He stifled a sigh. "I'll take care of it. The thing is, we'll need something to compare the results to." He gazed at his comrades. "That's where the rest of you come in. As soon as I have Ami's blood, that night we're going to have to …_borrow _her medical files."

"And Serena's files." Nephrite added seriously, "Endymion would kill us if we didn't investigate what the doctors thought about her and her unknown agent. And right now, I'd rather not test how much he'd miss us when we're dead."

"We'll need his too." Jadeite declared, "Because there is no way in heck that I will investigate our Queen's health without investing our King's."

"Because if Endymion would kill you, Serenity would make you _wish _you were dead with her silent glares. And let me tell you, this time around she'd rant along with them." Motoki laughed. "Because the serene, refined Crown-Princess Serenity has been reincarnated into Serena Tsukino. The loudest girl in Tokyo."

"Yeah. There's that too." It was impossible to tell which general responded, they were all cringing.

* * *

"Serena!"

Said blonde walked down the hallway and toward her locker, oblivious to the shout behind her. School had ended for the day and she was going to get out as fast as she possibly could. By some miracle, she _hadn't _gotten detention and she wanted that good fortune to last as long as possible. She smiled wryly as she spun the combination in her locker and pulled it open. _'It'll be my luck to do something wrong at the last minute. I just know it.'_

"_Serena!"_

She gasped, jumping almost a foot into the air as a shrill shout echoed down the halls, causing more than a few other students to flinch as well. She gulped as she hid her face behind the cover of her locker door. _'Please, please tell me that's not--'_

"Oh, Serena! I'm so glad I caught you before you left for the day."

'_--Ms. Haruna.' _The schoolgirl stifled a mournful sigh as she turned to look at her homeroom and math teacher dejectedly. "Yes?"

"I have something for you." The woman said simply as she thumbed through a stack of papers in the crook of her arm. "Oh, I know it was here a second ago!"

"Let me guess, a detention slip?" Serena asked, her shoulders slumping involuntarily. _'So much for my good fortune. I _knew _this would happen.'_

Ms. Haruna blinked, pausing in her search, and looked up curiously. "No. Of course not. You did absolutely nothing to merit one in any of my classes. No eating, no sleeping--" She frowned as she went back to her search. "--_Ugh_. I need a briefcase…"

"Wait. You mean you _aren't _giving me detention?" The redhead shook her head, making Serena frown. "Then why are you glad you caught up with me?" She glanced down at the papers, recognizing them as the work she'd turned in earlier that day. "Is there something wrong with my homework?" She bit her lip. _'Maybe I should have taken up Darien's offer for more help. The math was the most brutal of it all.'_

Ms. Haruna flashed her student a smile. "No, no. From what I've graded so far, you did a wonderful job. I am very pleased. I told you it would only take some time and effort."

Serena blinked in surprise before a proud smile light up her face. "Really?" Her smile turned into a grin as she received a nod in return. "What's wrong then?"

Her teacher released a triumphant "Ah ha!" as she pulled a paper out of the stack finally. She glanced over it quickly before nodding to herself. "This. It was mixed in with your work." With some maneuvering, she folding it in half before handing it over and meeting the blonde's eyes seriously. "I'm not sure how you got it but please ensure that you return it to its owner as soon as possible. Important, _private _information such as that could be used very dangerously and I do not wish to see that happen."

The younger female's brow furrowed in bafflement as she glanced down at the paper. "Um. What is it?"

Ms. Haruna rose an eyebrow. "If you don't know, then it must have been acquired by mistake. I'm positive I've heard you speak of a Darien, though." Her lips twitched. "Or rather, _complain _about him."

"Yes. He's my friend." _'I think he still is, at least…'_ Serena fought not to cringe as she recalled her words the last time they spoke --err, _shouted_. _'I don't _hate _him in the least. Sometimes --like now-- I hate when he's right, but never __**him**__.'_

The redhead nodded, not seeing the emotions flash through her pupil's eyes. "Then please be sure to give it back to him as soon as possible." She smiled. "That will be all. I'll let you go back to gathering your belongings." She turned around and began to walk back the way she came before pausing and turning slightly. "Serena." When the girl looked up, she tapped the schoolwork under her arm. "I expect any future work of yours to be as good as what you turned in. No more slacking off now, okay?"

"Okay, I'll try my best." The blonde nodded as her eyes returned to the paper. After a few moments, she looked up to where her teacher was quickly disappearing among the students. _'What is this? How could I have gotten it from Darien if it was so private and important?'_ She bit her lip. _'It--it wouldn't hurt to take a peek, right? I wouldn't use whatever it is against him. Yeah.'_

She glanced around nervously, first to her rapidly moving teacher then to the peers around her, before huddling as close to her locker as she could. Holding her breath, she unfolded the paper within the confines of the locker only to promptly frown in confusion. None of it made sense to her. Numbers and dates, things that looked like acronyms in a column next to her left thumb. _'What is this?'_ Her eyes flickered over everything, her brow lowering in concentration, but still couldn't make any sense of it --and she knew it wasn't because it was in English, either. What she _did _recognize was Darien's name in the corner, as well as the name Arthur Lunvaire below it. In the other corner was a date: _June 2_.

She bit her lip as she hesitantly flipped over the top sheet to look at the next one. Her eyes met the relative same sight of dates, numbers, and the acronym looking things, but at the bottom there was more. _'Estimated revenue?'_ She frowned as she read a whole bunch of words she didn't understand before she almost choked as her eyes read: _'Total asset: roughly 3,800,000.'_ She recognized the sign for US dollars so she quickly sought out a scrap of paper to do some calculations, her eyes widening comically as she came up with the estimated Yen equivalent. Either way, whoever was the owner of this sheet was one very wealthy person.

'_But, is this Darien's?'_ She glanced up to see Ms. Haruna had completely vanished. _'She seemed sure it was his. How does she know it isn't this Arthur Lunvaire's instead, though?'_ She looked down at the paper to study it. There must be something she wasn't seeing, or understanding, that said who owned all that money. Her eyes scoured the paper, finally spotting her proof near the very bottom of the sheet. _'Share holder: Darien Shields.'_ Below that was what she recognized to be Darien's elegant signature verifying the information. _'It--it __**is **__Darien's paper. And his money. Darien is a millionaire.'_ She winced at the thought as she quickly folded the paper and stuffed it into her backpack for safe keeping. _'I threw a shoe at a millionaire last night.'_

For some reason, that sounded a whole lot worse than thinking she'd thrown one at Darien.

* * *

Ami sighed as she placed her Calculus book in its proper slot in her bedroom bookshelf, feeling her shoulders sag. It had been a long day and it was about to become even longer; in twenty minutes, she would have to appear at the temple for the almost-daily Senshi meeting. Briefly the question of _why _the meetings continued on drifted through her mind. The princess had, for the most part, been caught up with everything that had happened since Luna had first thought Serena was a Senshi to the latest youma the rest of them had fought. Princess Serenity herself did not choose to offer much of her own information --not where she had been, how she knew where to find Luna in that park, how she _already _had her memories of the Silver Millennium.

It was frustrating, to say the very least. Yet, when she was the only one still rational when faced with the ethereal looking woman, it was to be expected. Neither Rei nor Luna had the sense about them to question the princess about anything they believe would upset her. And she herself lacked the _courage _to ask.

'_No.'_ Her eyes narrowed suddenly. She needed to have courage now more than ever. She _promised _Serena she would look into the Senshi glimmer and she _would_. She needed to be her Mercury-like self, calmly asking as many questions as she possibly could to both Luna and the princess to find out if the glimmer was beginning to fade around Serena since her powers had been taken away. The general public believed Sailor Moon to have abandoned her teammates as it was; she did _not _want Serena to have to suffer those same beliefs if people finally began to take notice of what had been there all along.

'_But how to go about it?'_ She mused. It wasn't as if she could come right out and _ask_; if it turned out the glimmer _was _fading, it would only make Rei malicious (more so than she already was concerning the blonde) with the thought Serena was getting justification for "masquerading" as a Senshi. The possibility of Serena revealing their own identities would never cross her mind, either, because she would be blinded with the thought that Princess Serenity would protect them if such a thing happened. Or… or Rei would admit --albeit only subconsciously-- that Serena would never do that to any of them. "Enemy" or not.

The bluenette started as her watch timer went off, alerting her that if she didn't leave now, she would have to run to the meeting. With another sigh she looked down at her satchel to see her English textbook inside. She knew not even ten minutes into the meeting, it would dissolve into a plan of attack against Serena and her "Dark Kingdom husband" (which reminded her she still had not managed to run into Darien to stealthily question him about that night he had found Serena) and her homework was the only thing that saved her from leaving to avoid all the hurtful words against her friend. If she left, she would give everyone a reason to believe _she _was not on their side. More importantly, if there was a development in the planning, she _had _to be there to know how much time she had to warn Serena.

'_I wish I wasn't so cowardice.'_ She thought wistfully, _'That I had the courage to leave and tell them that they're a bunch of loonies for believing Serena would be evil and harm _anyone_, least of all us.'_ But there _was _something she could do now. She had to question the glimmer because, while Serena changing her hairstyle gave her some time, it would _never _be enough if the glimmer _was _fading. Nothing short of plastic surgery or disappearing off the face of Earth would stop people from seeing Sailor Moon's face was _exactly _the same as Serena Tsukino's.

Ami nodded in determination as she pulled the satchel onto her shoulder. Yes. She could do this; it was the very _least _she could do for Serena. She cast a quick glance around her room to make sure everything was in order before spinning on her heel and pulling the door open. Just before it was closed, she voiced the thought roaming around in her head. "I wish Minako would appear at the meeting…"

She was none of the wiser as, when she was closing the front door of the seemingly empty apartment and locking up, a hair of golden-haired popped out of her closest. Sailor Venus unfolded the white doors soundlessly and stepped out before sending a small smile toward the bedroom door. "Just give me a few more days, Albreda." Her eyes light up as she caught sight the device she had had in her hands seconds before Ami had entered the apartment less than an hour ago. "Just a few more days…"

Seconds later, Sailor Venus transported herself into her secretly-_former _boss's domain, a pleased grin stretching across her face. She instantly turned to the sapphire encased in the ice dome, waving the Mercury Mini-computer she now held in her hand victoriously, and a little mockingly. "Let's see how much longer you can fight against me _this_ time."

As if in reply, the dome wavered just the slightest and Áine had to slap a hand over her mouth to muffle her excited shout. At long last, it seemed, she was _finally _doing something right.

* * *

Ikuko stood in the middle of the Tsukino living room, a frown etched into her face. Where was that darn cat? It may have taken her a while to realize it (but, really, who could blame her when her daughter had been hospitalized for a week? And said daughter may very well be dying slowly. And was recently revealed to be Sailor Moon --_'I'm not Wonder-Mom, for crying out loud! A woman can only handle so much!'--_) but the family cat was missing. And had been for weeks.

The housewife chewed on the inside of her cheek anxiously. Serena _loved _Luna, the girl had once said that it was the nagging older sister she'd never had (she herself had never bothered to try to understand what _that _meant; how could a cat be nagging?). Her daughter might very well decide to hate everyone if she realized they had abandoned her feline-friend while she was recovering. _'I should probably check the garage again, just in case…'_

But, before she could move a step, the front door opened and a cheerful voice called out. "I'm home!" She watched in dread as Serena caught sight of her frozen form and practically skipped over to her. "Mom! Guess what happened at school today!?"

Ikuko blinked carefully. "You got detention?"

The blonde instantly scowled. "_Mom! _You're starting to be as bad as Darien is with the teasing!" She gasped suddenly, her eyes flaring wide. "Darien… I never _saw _him today. I didn't even run into him when I was walking home. That's-- that's--"

"Not usual?" Her mother supplied, her brow creased in confusion.

"Yeah." She breathed, _'And hopefully a bad sign. For all the words we've yelled at each other he better not have chosen to take _those _seriously! If he has, he's an idiot!'_ She groaned. "And I can't go to the arcade to tell him he's one, either…"

"Why can't you go to the arcade?"

"Because the--" Serena's head snapped up in horror as she remembered her mother's presence. "Because I, um, ran out of allowance money." She amended quickly, her eyes skittering around nervously for a way out of the conversation. As if by some miracle, she abruptly yawned. "Besides, I'm really tired too." She added as she looked at Ikuko with half-lidded eyes, "I think I might take a nap or something. The arcade is too noisy to do that."

The purple-haired woman frowned suspiciously. "But I know you've told me you feel asleep there before…"

"Y-yeah. But that was, uh, after a long night you-know-what. With the thing I'm not anymore?" Serena winced.

"Senshi battle." The housewife murmured in realization, flinching slightly at the reminder. She'd accepted it but that didn't mean the ramifications had quite sunk in yet. "Oh." She smiled suddenly, feathering her daughter's bangs back fondly. "I'm proud of you not getting detention today, so how about when you wake up, I make you a nice ice-cream sundae? How does that sound?"

Serena, as expected, grinned widely. "Ice cream for not getting detention? Why didn't you give me that incentive _ages _ago? I've probably never have had detention in my _life_!" She blinked after a moment. "Wait. How do you know about the detention-less day I'm having? I never got the chance to tell you."

Ikuko chuckled. "Well, beside the fact you're home _much _earlier than normal, Ms. Haruna called about twenty minutes ago to tell me. Said something about how surprised and pleased she was about the schoolwork you turned in, as well?" She rose an eyebrow inquiringly.

"Oh, that." The blonde smiled proudly. "She said I did a really good job, at least on the math homework I gave her. I think it might have been 'cause Darien kept explaining things for me, though." She winced as thoughts of the college student flooded her mind. He must be really angry to avoid her like this, or _scared _of her; she _had _acted pretty bad yesterday… Another yawn slipped out of her mouth without warning. "You mind if I go upstairs now, Mom?"

"Of course. I think you earned some quiet time after the day you've had." On impulse, Ikuko hugged the girl and kissed her forehead. "I really am proud of you, sweetie. I always have been, but this… I always knew you had the potential in you to do great things and you're starting to prove me right. So many changes in such a short time… _Good _changes."

"Really?" Serena whispered wonderingly; she didn't think she'd ever heard anything about _that _kind of potential before. More like a potential to trip and fall on her face. She sniffled as her mother nodded. "Thank you! For everything!" She squeezed the woman in a hug one last time before bounding up the stairs. She was halfway up when her mother abruptly called out to her, making her pause and look back. "Yeah?"

Ikuko bit her lip nervously. "H--have you seen Luna by any chance?" The blonde blanched but her mother mistook why for something else entirely. "Don't worry! I'm sure she's around here… somewhere. We'll find her, I promise!"

Serena swallowed nervously. "N-no. If Luna decided she wanted another family to live with, that--that's okay. I mean, maybe she decided to go back to the family who owned her before I found her on my way home that day?"

Ikuko rose an dubious eyebrow. "Go back to her previous home after all these months with us?"

"Anything is possible, right?" She shrugged before pulling out her trump card she knew would make her mother drop the conversation. It wasn't morally right, yes, but the alternative just might be having to share what really happened with Luna. And she _refused _to do that because it would spiral into why she wasn't a Senshi anymore. "I was Sailor Moon but no one ever expected that. Maybe Luna decided that it was time for her to go to her rightful owner." She pasted a smile on her face. "At least now I won't have to hear Shingo complaining about how much he hates cats!" A genuine giggle escaped her tight lip. "Although I think I might miss him jump into the air every time Luna snuck up and scared him."

Ikuko giggled herself. "All right, if you really are okay with her being gone…"

"I am. Don't worry." She continued to walk back up the steps, a crease in her brow. _'At least, I think I'm okay… No. Luna is happy with Princess Serenity at the temple. She did go back to her previous --kind of-- owner, the princess. I just want Luna and everyone else to be happy, which is why I'm giving up the arcade for them. So they can go there and continue to have fun without my appearance being a burden. Even after everything that's happened, I still want them to be happy… I always have.'_

* * *

Done: 10:55, April 21, 2009

Posted: 11:10, April 21, 2009

There's that selfless Serena! I wanted to make it clear that she still is _Serena_, Sailor Moon and odangoes or not. She's still the same caring, generous teenager she always has been. --she just has a different look now. Anyone catch why I had her cut her hair to knee-length, right? It was done purposely.

Go generals! They're closer to figuring out the truth than Ami is, but that's only 'cause they have more to work with. More memories, more heads, more eyes, more… _everything_. Too bad Ami and them can't just share all their information with each other, right? Then everyone would have the complete story.

Hehe, little Rose is deviously sweet! She just doesn't know how much trouble she is going to get her father in when she shows Darien her mother's picture. But she just wants her Mama back so I don't blame her in the least. I would do the same thing. But I have to wonder what Darien is going to do afterwards…

Well, there's probably a bucket load of other things I can say about this chapter but I'm tired. I have no energy to write any long …_things_. Hope you enjoyed the chapter, please R/R. Always loved!

_Tiger Celeste._


	29. Chapter 29

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with. Also, I do not own the "Alfa Romeo SZ" but I am firm in my belief that that is what Darien's anime car is based on.

Ugh. Worst chapter to write _ever_, which is my explanation for the longer-than-usual-wait. But, since it was a long wait, that means it's a long chapter! (Sorry; had to break my promise to not write another 30-pager. I wanted to make up for Darien missing the action last chapter. There _was _a reason people. Hehe.)

Reviews (and the chart that was requested) will be addressed next chapter, promise! There simply isn't enough room in this one.

On to the story~!

* * *

_She was running. She could feel something was wrong, horribly wrong, but she did not understand how she knew. She gasped, a sharp twinge of pain causing her to stop and clutch her heart. A name frantically floated through her mind but before she could process it, she was running faster than she had in her entire life. She distantly heard sounds of battle, a mixture of cries and something entirely inhuman drifting up to her ears. She waved away all the hands reaching for her, unheeding of their pleas for her safety. It seemed that all too suddenly she was outside and staring across a battlefield to the cause of her horrific feelings._

_She cried out as a golden sword slid through the chest of a dark-haired man, a sickening sound that replayed over and over in her mind as he fell to his knees. It should not have been so easy; no object should be able to move through bone and flesh so effortlessly. He was wincing and crying out as he clutched the hilt of the sword and attempted to pull it out. It was doing no good; his hands were too slippery --stained red with blood-- and each pull only caused him to cry out louder than the last time._

_Her mouth was moving desperately but it took her a few moments to realize no sound was coming out, just the silent chant of "No, no, no…". She took an absent step closer only for the slipper on her right foot to step into something that instantly soaked into the fine silk. She looked down only to gag involuntarily as she saw the puddle of red washing against her ankle. A vibrant red, like the blood that ran along the side of the man's face…_

_She stumbled forward in panic as a shadowed, feminine figure appeared leisurely behind the man amongst the surrounding chaos. He noticed the figure almost instantly, snarling out something that made him receive a small smirk in reply. The smirk only widened as the woman calmly reached out and grasped the bloody sword, pulling it out of its foreign host almost violently. He fell down coughing up more red blood, only the hands he put out in front of him at the last second saving him from falling on the injury that was beginning to glow a golden hue through the slices in his armor._

_She continued to stumble forward, never noticing the monster that had caught sight of her and began sliding closer with sickening grin stretching across its grotesque face. She was almost upon the scene that riveted her attention before she was grabbed from behind and pulled against a slimy body. Instinctively, she screamed out a name; the name of the one who had never failed to save her before. She watched as his head snapped over to her, blue eyes filled with horror at her presence, before they dimmed slightly as that same golden sword was plunged through his right shoulder blade mercilessly._

_Something about that particular shoulder…_

_She screamed as realization dawned a second before the golden sparks faded away from his stomach. Before she knew what had happened, the monster was gone and she was running toward the two, blind to the carnage of both human and inhuman body parts littering the once pristine grounds. She watched through blurry, terrified eyes as the man pushed himself up to his feet, stumbling a few times before shaking his head and standing firm. A frantic plea escaped her dry mouth as he ripped the sword out of his body and cried out to the heavens. He stumbled even more once he was holding the weapon aloft, actually falling down onto one knee, and the woman only smirked down at him. Slowly lifting one foot, she kicked him square in the face and he was pushed down to the ground with a hiss of pain._

_She could see the way his teeth were clenching, the muscles in his exposed skin rippling, that he was having a hard time getting up. Something was wrong… the figure was a mere slip of a person, a seasoned warrior like him should not have such trouble pushing her off. She found her answer as his eyes began to slide closed, rivers of red running down his body to splash on the already violated ground._

_He was dying… He was going to leave her all alone._

_The rest was a blur of thoughts and feelings. Pain, an all-encompassing pain that was not wholly physical, blocked out the rest of her actions. All she knew was the searing feeling in her heart and breast that continued on even as she collapsed. She screamed out the assault of her emotions and through half-lidded eyes saw a bright white light shoot up into the darkened sky._

Serena's scream continued as she flew up in her bed, her head snapping around frantically until she realized she was in her bedroom, safe. There were no youma, no battlefield, and more importantly, no blood. It had been a nightmare; only a nightmare. She took deep, shaky breaths as she gathered her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. The glowing green numbers of her alarm clock told her it was close to three a.m., but she paid it no mind as she tried to calm herself down. "It's okay." She whispered as she closed her eyes, feeling a cold chill creep along her heated and sweating skin, "Darien is fine."

She bit her lip anxiously as she tightened her grip, fingernails absently digging into her calves. A week without seeing him didn't mean he was hurt or--or _dead_. She gasped, shaking her head frantically. _'No, no! Don't start crying now!'_ The chide did not good as she felt the telltale wetness slide down her cheeks. Seconds later, great shuttering gasps seized the breath out of her lungs and she was forced to bury her face against the top of her knees to muffle the sound.

Try as she might, she couldn't convince herself that Darien _was _fine and, over an hour later when she finally fell into a fitful sleep, her tears were still shining in the moonlight streaming through her curtains.

* * *

At 3:05 p.m. on the dot, a loud ringing erupted throughout the courtyard and halls of Juuban High School and seconds later a throng of teenagers pushed open the double front doors. Amidst the students' excited chatter about what they were going to do that weekend, one girl walked among the chaos with a serene smile on her face.

Not including the occasional nightmare and constant worrying about a certain dark-haired college student, Serena had to admit that she had had a fantastic week. Every time she'd gone to visit Hotaru, the girl seemed to be in better spirits and that was enough to put a grin on her face. By some sort of miracle, she had finished _and _turned in every school assignment given to her. Then, best of all, for a whole _week _she hadn't heard the shout of _"Serena! Detention!" _and it felt _wonderful_; no teachers breathing down her neck, no peers giggling at her repeated failures, no disappointed 'tsks' echoing in her ears by people she didn't really know. Was that what she had missed all those times she'd dejectedly accepted that little detention slip? That quiet and just, well, overall feeling _proud _of herself? Why hadn't she ever noticed it before?

The blonde grinned, practically skipping down the steps. Yeah, it felt good not to have detention. _'So good I think I might actually make a habit of _not _getting it. Mom and Dad are already in some kind of shock over this past week and Shingo's still stunned speechless from the first day, I think. Besides, it gives me more time to go home and relax before I do my homework, anyways.'_ Her grin widened. Who'd have thought doing homework was so rewarding in the end? _'Okay, so it's not the most fun to do and I'm not suddenly going to turn into Ami or anything, but the looks I get from my teachers completely makes up for it!'_ She giggled. Her Literature teacher had dropped at least ten Styrofoam coffee cups in shock by Wednesday and, despite her encouraging words, Ms. Haruna had still looked like she wanted to faint this morning. _'Yeah. Completely makes up for it.'_

"Do you see that car!?"

Serena paused, thinking the shout was aimed at her, until she spotted two guys from said Literature class standing not far away and recognized the voice as belonging to one of them. Now that she looked around, actually, she saw quite a number of people crowding around something at the edge of the path she was on --the same something that the guys seemed to be talking about. _'A car, then?'_ Her brow furrowed as she glanced this way and that; there were little groups of people who'd stayed around everywhere on the lawn and the sidewalk, most of them talking and pointing to where the crowd was gathered.

"Completely! Dude, it's not even street legal in America!"

"That's just how awesome it is!"

Her attention turned back to the two guys from her class; they seemed to have a good vantage point to the car or whatever it was, so she headed toward them curiously. Along the way she passed a group of three girls giggling behind their hands, sharing sly looks with one another. Her brow furrowed deeper. _'Why would they be giggling and looking at each like that over a car?'_ She smiled humorously. _'Must be some car. Kaito and Shin are practically drooling as it is.'_ She giggled as she arrived between the said classmates. "Hey, what's going on?"

Kaito turned around with a glare at being interrupted but it quickly became a surprised and pleased smile, making his friend chuckle and roll his eyes. "H-hi, Serena." He cleared his throat and looked away. "We were just, you know, uh, admiring the car. Pretty cool isn't it?" The blonde nodded absently until she saw exactly _what _everyone was fawning over. She felt her jaw drop as her eyes took in the sleek red car. Kaito, incorrectly assuming her expression was due to her awe of the vehicle, grinned. "Yeah. I agree. It's an Alfa Romeo SZ. Definitely one of my favorite cars." He blushed suddenly, rubbing the back of his head. "S-Serena, did I ever t-tell you how pr--pretty you looked with your new hair?"

"Uh-huh." She whispered as her eyes drifted from the familiar car to its even familiar owner. Darien was leaning against the passenger door, arms folded across his chest and looking down at the ground, completely avoiding all the attention he and his car were receiving. He was wearing black and white sneakers, a pair of blue jeans, and a black long-sleeved shirt; she had a feeling if he'd been wearing his now-customary leather jacket (had she ever apologized for ruining his hideous green one? She couldn't remember) he would have been receiving a lot more attention and whispers. _'At least now I know what those girls were giggling about…'_

Even she had to admit that he looked …_handsome _like that. His hair wind-tousled and hanging down in his eyes, his biceps defined by the well-fitting shirt. He didn't look like the regular Darien she was used to seeing on a daily basis --the one who was buried in a pile of schoolwork or even the one that treated Hotaru like a daughter. He looked like--like… _'I don't even know what to describe him as besides hot!'_She froze, her eyes widening in disbelief. "Oh. My. _Gosh_. I did _not _just think that."

Kaito looked at the girl inquiringly. "What did you just think?"

She didn't hear either him or his words. As soon as she'd spoken, Darien had instantly looked up and captured her eyes; like he knew _exactly _where she was and had only been waiting for a sign. Before she knew what she was doing, she was walking over to stand in front of him. His eyes stayed focused on her hair, taking in the straight braid she'd put it in that day, before they slid to her eyes. "You cut your hair."

"Yeah." She answered breathlessly, "Sunday. After everything." She attempted a smile as the seriousness of the conversation penetrated her hazy mind. "Y-you said I might be as smart as Ami underneath all that hair, right? So--so I thought maybe if I--"

"Serena."

She stopped, suddenly feeling overwhelmingly self-conscious as he continued to watch her with those dark, fathomless eyes of his. She looked down at the ground to escape their gaze. "D-do you like it?" She asked hesitantly, her heart pounding in her ears, only to frown a minute or two later when he still hadn't said anything. She glanced up to see he was looking at her hair again, this time with an odd expression.

"I… have seen you like this before." He whispered as he touched the braid where it was hanging over her shoulder. She gasped silently, her face flaming into a blush, as his fingers moved up to run through her bangs before his hand slid down to cup her cheek. He gently turned her head this way and that, taking in her hair from as many angles as he could, before grinning. "I think I might like it." He dropped his hand to cross his arms again. "So what took you so long? I was afraid I would have to go hunt you down and make up some family emergency to get you out of your usual detention."

And just like that the spell woven over her broke into a million fragments. She glared as Darien went from stunning, mysterious hunk to the familiar annoyance. "I didn't get detention today, for your information." She growled, sniffing disdainfully. "I haven't had it all _week_."

His eyebrows rose sharply and he whistled through his teeth. "Wow. A new hairstyle _and _no detention. Any other changes you've made this week that I should be aware of?" He glanced over her head. "Any wings sprout up suddenly?"

Something tugged at the back of her mind, making her frown again, but she quickly dismissed it in favor of demanding, "Why are you here?"

"You and I are going for a little drive."

She gaped incredulously at the calm statement. "After a week of not seeing you, making me think that I finally scared you away or--or _something_, you decide we're going for a little _drive_?"

"Sorry, it's been a hectic week." He grimaced before his lips twitched. "Besides, I've seen you inhale a triple chocolate milkshake, two slices of peach pie, and a cone of rocky road ice-cream. In one sitting. You can never scare me more than that did." He pushed off the car and opened the door. "Get in."

She took a nervous step back. "I don't think so. I still don't know where we're going. Or why."

"On a little drive." He repeated, rising an eyebrow at her expression. "What? You don't trust me?"

Her eyes narrowed. "Do I need to remind you how we keep fighting? I'm wondering if I _should _trust you or not. You're acting weird. Who knows, you could have finally become fed up with me and have been planning some horrible practical joke in revenge this whole week."

He sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "No. I was _busy_. You know, with things like schoolwork, preparing for finals, and trying to get Hotaru's guardianship?" He shook his head as she released a small "Oh". "Just get inside. You know you can trust me. We're just going somewhere to talk."

"What do you call what we're doing right now? It seems like _talking _to me." She gulped as he shot her a dark look. _'Ooh… Not the time for joking, apparently.'_

"Get. In. The. Car. _Now_." He ordered as he leaned over the door to get a better look at her, "I don't have time for these games."

She crossed her arms across her chest and glared; well, if he said it _that _way… "No. I. Don't. _Think_. So."

"Don't make me, Serena." He shot a look over her shoulder to all the people still gathered around. The two of them had been given a wide berth, so no one could really hear what was being said, but actions always did seem to speak louder than words. "Do you really want me to fuel the gossip already running through the crowds?"

"And why would I care about their gossip? We're just talking. They can all see that."

"Really?" He murmured, leaning down toward her. She swallowed thickly. _'It's just Darien-withdrawal! He's not cute. He's **not**__!' _"So you're telling me you _don't _care that the boy that helped bring your get well card to the hospital --Umino-- is running around, telling everyone I'm your doting boyfriend that spent every waking moment with you that week? Or that the group of girls to your right are giggling and wishing I would kiss you and hurry up about it already?"

She sputtered in shock as her blush returned violently, making her face match the red bow of her school uniform. "They--they are not!" She hissed furiously, "You're lying!"

A lazy smile stretched across his face. "Now why would I do that? I told you. I could care less what these people gossip about. Hmm." His eyes flickered around briefly before he focused back on the blonde. "You know, most of them are pretty convinced I'm your boyfriend in just the few minutes we've been talking. Even those boys you were standing with. One of them is teasing the other right now, as a matter of fact. Saying you have a cool boyfriend with an even cooler car."

She narrowed her eyes as he seemed to lean toward her even more, before squeezing them shut. She told herself it was because she would be able to hear Kaito and Shin better and _not _because she could hear a few squeals echoing from the girls to the right.

"_Man, you were completely blown off."_ That was Shin, sounding amused, _"How long have you been trying to get Serena's attention? Since, like, the seventh grade?"_

"_I said shut up already!" _Kaito that time, sounding both embarrassed and angry at the same time.

"_Oh well. Do you think he was around before or after that? She never seemed to notice any of your attention."_ Shin chuckled. _"Maybe that's why. She probably had eyes on him that whole time. I mean, did you see the way she walked over to him? She was practically in a dreamy daze, and I know it wasn't for the car!"_ He chuckled louder.

"_Thanks for the sympathy, you're a real friend aren't you?!"_

Her eyes snapped open as she quickly turned her head to see Kaito push past his friend's shoulder and fade into the crowd behind them. She looked back at her companion in bewilderment. "I--I didn't know… I thought he was just being nice. A-a lot of people are nice to me."

Darien eyed her in disbelief, his eyes absently sliding down. She'd always been beautiful but something about that new hair… He flushed, shaking his head, and forced himself to met her eyes. "Then let me be the one to make it clear for you. More than half of the guys nice to you are probably nice for a _reason_."

She gaped, searching his eyes for any form of amusement, mockery, or even some teasing. Instead all she found was blank seriousness. "They--they wanted to be…"

He nodded. "Correct. They wanted to be your boyfriend. Beau. Go steady with you, etcetera." He glanced around the crowd, unaware of the deadly glare on his face as he heard some of the conversations. His eyes narrowed on one guy in particular, if he said one more thing about Serena's "assets" he was going to…

"You jerk!" He blinked as his chest was unexpectedly shoved backwards. Serena grit her teeth as the man barely moved under her attack. "You just had to destroy my beliefs, didn't you!?" She growled up at him, thumping his chest one more time for emphasis.

His brow furrowed. "I did nothing of the sort. I simply made my observations clear." He shrugged and looked back to the car door pointedly. "Are you going to get in now or what?"

"No!" She stomped her foot, swung around, and began heading toward the crowd. "Now I have to find Kaito and apologize for all these years of ignoring him! Unintentional or not."

He glared, swiftly catching up to her and grabbing a hold of one of her upper arms. "I don't think so. We've wasted enough daylight as it is. You're getting into that car now."

"Make me!" She hissed over her shoulder, unsuccessfully trying to pull her arm out of his grip.

He grinned; those were exactly the words he had been waiting to hear. "My pleasure." Everyone crowded around watched in astonishment as, in one solid move, the dark-haired man let go of Serena's arm in favor of sweeping her feet out from under her to carry her back to the car.

"_Darien!" _The blonde half-growled, half-screeched. Her eyes snapped around, growing mortified as she saw all the wide eyes fixed on her and quickly became unwilling to bring more attention to the both of them by screaming like she really wanted to. "Let me go!" She hissed up at her captor, "You're starting to make too much of a habit out of this!"

"Aw," He rumbled into her ear, "Do you want me to be in a tuxedo next time? I know you never felt awkward then." She instantly froze and he winced. _'Damn. Stuck my foot in my mouth again…'_

"Let me go, Shields." She whispered furiously, "I have no desire to talk to you."

He mumbled irritably under his breath, calling himself a myriad of things, as he eased her in the passenger seat. "Well I'm sorry but I have every desire to talk to you." He told her firmly as he squatted on the curb beside the car, "And I'd prefer that it's done now rather than later. You can just stand there and listen but I'm _going _to talk to you."

She leveled him a dark glare. "And just what is so important?"

He pursed his lips but didn't look away from the (admittedly) intimidating expression. "I used to dream of the Moon Princess." He smiled grimly as she paled. "Yeah. My thoughts exactly." He sighed. "I _am _tired of us fighting, Serena. That night I drove you home, you asked if we were okay, remember?" She nodded slowly, staring at him with wide eyes. "And I said no, but that's only because _can't _be okay until we figure out what's happening and share our side of the story about _everything_. _**Without **_fighting. Don't you agree?" She nodded slowly again, making him smile in relief. "Good. That's all I want. For us to be okay, too."

Her eyes widened even more as she watched him close the door and walk around to the driver side. _'Did he just kiss my cheek?'_ Outside, the girls squealed even louder and Darien refused to make eye contact with her as he turned on the car and roared out of the school premises. _'Well, I guess that answers that…'_ She quickly turned her flaming face to the window as she struggled to pull on her seatbelt and take her side pack off at the same time.

* * *

It took her a long while to gather the courage to talk. Or, at least, it had _felt _like a long while. The dashboard clock told her it had only been twenty minutes but she didn't believe that. It'd been an _eternity_ of awkward silence. "This is practically kidnapping, you know." She stated as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Maybe. Yet you didn't scream for help when you had the opportunity so I'll take my chances." Her eyes narrowed at Darien's calmness as he continued to drive, not looking at her. "Your shoe is on the backseat. I figured you might miss it eventually." She winced but, before she had a chance to say anything, he spoke again. "I know what you were trying to do the other night and, honestly, I probably would have done something similar. But I'm _not _going to let you push me away, even if it's in an attempt to protect me. It's a well-known fact that we've been acquainted for almost a year; it'd only seem suspicious if we began avoiding each other and stopped talking." He glanced at her, growing concerned by her ashen face. "Serena, listen to me. I'm not going to let Luna, the Dark Kingdom, or anyone else for that matter, hurt me, okay?"

She could feel the tears instantly spring into her eyes as her mind flashed back to her dream. Why was it always _swords_? "Y-you don't…" She tightened her crossed arms protectively and bowed her head slightly. "You don't know _what _will happen. I--I could have _died _that day in the park for all we--"

"But you didn't." He interrupted, his knuckles white from the tight grip he had on the steering wheel, "_I _would have known. I would have _felt _it."

She froze at the swift, but confident, answer before snapping her gaze over to him. "But, I'm not Sailor Moon anymore. That--that link or whatever let you know I'd transformed for a battle doesn't exist anymore. It has no reason to."

"It exists."

Her lips parted in shock. "How can you be so sure?"

"I can feel it, Serena. Right this instant." He answered seriously, glancing at her from the corner of his eye. "I didn't _just _know when you transformed. I was _led _to you, and thus the battles too."

"Like the pull," She whispered, "that sometimes told me know what tree Tuxedo Mask was hiding in."

His eyes dashed over to her in amazement. So it hadn't _just _been a _feeling _like she'd told him, then. "Exactly. That same kind of pull is leading me straight to you just like it always has. Now that I know you and Sailor Moon are one in the same, it doesn't matter if you can't transform anymore. I know what the link is supposed to feel like and I can… I'm not sure how to describe it. Fixate it on you instead? All I know is the feeling I received with Sailor Moon is now the feeling I associate with you as Serena too."

"Is…" She shook her head in disbelief. How could that link still _work_? "Is that how you found me on that bench? You could feel where I was? You were …pulled… in the right direction?"

He nodded. "Yes. It isn't as fine-tuned as it was when I was led to Sailor Moon but with some time it will be." He glanced over at her again to see her nodding silently, her brow furrowed. The question _'But _why _does it still exist?'_ was almost tangible in the air between them but he found he didn't have an answer for that so he stayed silent.

Serena, in the meantime, pursed her lips in thought. _'Does that mean if he ever transformed I could feel it? At least, if I concentrated enough? But… he said he wasn't going to transform anymore, so I'll probably never know.'_ She stifled a sigh, abandoning her thoughts, and looked out her window. Immediately her head turned to follow a sign they were passing. "We're leaving Tokyo?"

"Yes."

She frowned as she finally noticed they were on the freeway. "What are my parents going to think when I don't show up at home?"

"Look in the backseat."

She looked back curiously only for her brow to furrow again. She'd hurriedly thrown her side pack back there earlier, where she now saw it'd ended up on the floor. The strap was draped over her infamous shoe, which was right beside a very familiar pink and bunny-covered bag on the seat. Her eyes slid over to Darien suspiciously, and somewhat frightfully. "Why do you have my overnight bag?"

A blush formed on his cheeks at the accusation in her voice. "Not what you're thinking." He said quickly, "It was your mother's idea. Once she knew where I was taking you, she thought you might appreciate something other than your uniform to wear. Something warmer, too." He smirked. "She, also, said that if you're not back in your own bed by midnight, at the _very _latest, she'll hunt me down with her arsenal of kitchen knives. And since I have no desire to face her wrath, don't worry. You'll get home on time and none worse for wear."

"They _know _about this?" She asked disbelievingly, "Was this some secret plan only _I _didn't know about?"

He flashed her his smirk. "No, at least not intentionally. I thought all this up when I was walking home after our latest fight but I was barely able to find time to ask your parents, let alone you."

"You _didn't _ask me. You picked me up and practically threw me in here!"

He studiously ignored her. "Of course, by the bag's presence, you can see that I _did _receive their permission to take you out of town when I asked Wednesday morning. They told me their only condition, besides the midnight curfew, was that it had to wait until it wasn't a school night. So, here we are."

The blonde felt her jaw drop. "That was _it? _They let you --a college student they _hardly _know and a _**guy**_-- take me-- their _teenaged daughter_-- out of town on a _Friday night __**and **_packed an overnight bag _**for **_me, just by asking for their permission!?"

He shrugged. "Pretty much. They wanted to know why, of course, so I gave them an edited version --they couldn't know most of it involved Senshi-related things, right?" Her wince went unseen. "Your mother was the only one that had any problems with it afterwards. Your father simply advised me to feed you so you didn't get cranky."

She instantly choked out a half-laugh, half-groan and buried her face in her hands. "What is _wrong _with them?" She glared at Darien through her fingers. "And what does my father like you when he threatens any other guy for even _talking _to me?" She sighed, dropping her hands, as he shrugged again. "Fine. How'd you convince my mom then? Enough for her to _suggest _packing me more clothes, that is."

"She wanted to know what that meeting you had at the hospital was for, since you were apparently too distracted for her to ask. I saw no harm in her knowing, so I told her about my hope to get Hotaru's guardianship." He chuckled. "The next thing I know, I was being smothered with hugs while a slice of cake was all but shoved down my throat. Apparently she'd forgotten all her reservations about the trip because the suggestion for the overnight bag came not long after…"

Almost against her will, the blonde giggled. "Figures. She wanted to foster care for Hotaru, I heard my parents talking about it when I woke up at the hospital once, but Dad said we couldn't afford it. She must have been really relieved. I'm sorry she got so overzealous though, she can be too much sometimes."

"It was alright. I had--" He paused before continuing haltingly, "I've never really experienced something like that before. That motherliness. It was… nice."

She winced at the reminder of his orphanhood before blurting out, "You could have just told them the truth. They know I'm Sailor Moon." She instantly groaned, slapping her forehead. "Smooth, Serena, smooth." She cringed at Dairen's look before he snapped his attention back to the road. "I know, I know. I almost can't believe it myself."

"_How?"_

"When I got home Sunday… well, you saw the way I left you." It was his turn to cringe. "Yeah. And then, to make that all worse, when I walked inside everyone was watching the footage of Jupiter's death on the news. My parents said something, I snapped back, and then I realized they'd all been looking at me and I mean _looking_. I _knew _they'd finally noticed the similarities so I ran upstairs and ended up locking myself in the bathroom." She gestured to her braid. "And voila. No more odangoes."

His mouth open and closed a few times as he struggled to find something to say. "So _that's _why you cut your hair." He shook his head in bewilderment. "I can't believe… _four _people, in _one _day, abruptly noticing the similarities. The woman on the street could have been a fluke, but your family too --who _see _you everyday-- to finally notice… It's unfathomable."

She chewed on her lip."…I told Ami about it, too. We think it might be the glimmer-stuff I told you about beginning to fade since I stopped being a Senshi. She promised she was looking into it but… I have a feeling no one has ever just _stopped _being a Senshi. It doesn't sound very likely from what I've heard."

Darien glanced over at her, frowning at her worried expression. "But cutting your hair was quick thinking on your part." He reassured, "Even if them noticing was a fluke, it's too much of a chance to take on anyone else. So I agree with your decision to cut your hair and let down the odangoes but… do you miss them?"

She bit her lip again and began to fiddle with the seatbelt strapped across her chest. "I'd had my odangoes since I was little, of course I would miss them, and maybe when this all blows over I'll grow them back out. I… I was crying as I cut my hair." She admitted quietly, "At first I thought it was because I was going to miss them so much but, after it was all over with, I realized that it had been in _relief_. I just can't understand _why _I would feel that way, though."

His hands tightened on the steering wheel almost involuntarily. "Maybe they're just too much of a burden to bear right now. In Tokyo's eyes, that is Sailor Moon's hairstyle."

"And the Princess's." She whispered before blanching as she remembered his earlier statement. It'd completely been shoved into the back of her mind in light of his abrupt kiss on her cheek. Her eyes slid to him in disbelief. "You dreamt about the Moon Princess. That--that's why you weren't surprised when Ami and I mentioned her that day at the hospital."

He winced as he glanced over. "I'd prefer we save that discussion until later. Please, Serena. When we arrive, I promise I'll tell you. Just… just not now. _Please_."

She nodded acceptingly but mainly because _she _wanted to avoid what those dreams could mean for as long as possible. "So, you said we were going out of town?" He nodded as forced himself to relax and loosen his grip on the steering wheel. "Where? And what are you going to show me?"

"We are going out of town, so I'm going to show you something out of town." He said dryly, laughing at her sour expression, "I thought you liked surprises?"

Her nose crinkled. "Well, yeah. Usually. But you're still acting funny so I'm not sure if I'd like your surprise. The only thing I can really think of in this direction is the ocean so I'm half expecting you to throw me in somewhere and drive off."

His smiled slipped. "No. I'm not going to throw you in and drive off. Don't worry."

"_**Their ashes have been scattered in the ocean for a number of years."**_

'_I said something very wrong, didn't I? His parents ashes are in the ocean.'_ She cringed, hunkering down in her seat, and began looking around for a distraction. After a few minutes of a _very _uncomfortable silence, she heard herself say, "You know, I just realized this car isn't very… _you_."

He glanced back over at her but she couldn't tell if his amused smile was genuine or not. "And why do you think that? I rather like this car."

She nodded. "Yeah. I mean, I figure you would like it and probably drool over it like all the guys at school were. But, it doesn't seem something you'd actually _buy_."

"Because it's a sports car?" He asked with a chuckle, "Need I remind you that I own a motorcycle too? I have no problem with fast vehicles." His eyes took on a somewhat dreamy expression. "And this one is fast and sleek. Zero to sixty miles per hour in seven seconds. Max speed of a hundred and fifty two miles per hour. A three liter, V6 engine. Tan leather interior…"

She giggled. "Wow. You really are a typical guy, I never would have thought so."

He grinned, shrugging. "I am what I am. Which is, of course, very refined, intelligent, deviously handsome, having a superb taste in vehicles--"

She rolled her eyes. "And with an ego to hold it all in." She giggled again. "Seriously, though. I figure you'd be more likely to have the top-rated safety vehicle. Or a typical, affordable Japanese car." She glanced around, her brow furrowed. "This really is an Italian import, isn't it?"

"Yeah." All the wistfulness and amusement had long since faded from the dark-haired man and he was hard-pressed not to tighten his grip once again. "Special ordered, actually."

"See!" She smiled victoriously. "That's what I mean! It just doesn't seem like you to waste money on a foreign vehicle, no matter how drool worthy is it, and to _special order _one…"

"It had to be special ordered." He interrupted quietly, "I wanted it to be an exact duplicate but they had stopped making the model."

She looked over at him curiously. "Duplicate of what?"

"The car my parents died in." He answered, his gaze staring through the window shield almost blankly, "It… I don't know. Makes me feel closer to them?"

"O-oh." She stuttered, wincing. "S-sorry." She quickly turned to her window as he glanced at her, fearing the look in his eyes. She pursed her lips, firmly trying to keep her mouth shut in fear of saying the wrong thing yet again. _'Strike two. Shut up before you hit three and he decides to kick you out on the side of the road!' _She scolded herself harshly.

* * *

Her sleep deprivation of the night before must have wanted to make itself known because the next thing she knew, she was being awakened by poking on her cheek. "Serena, wake up. …Serena…"

She groaned, swatting away the hand. "Five more minutes, Mom."

"Now that's the first time I've ever been called _that_." Slowly the voice registered in the blonde's mind. Male. Familiar. Amused? "You have drool on your face." Her eyes snapped open. Definitely amused and definitely Darien.

"I do _not _drool!" She growled but the menacing effect was ruined by a yawn. She rubbed her eyes, blinking around owlishly. "Where are we?"

He laughed. "What, is your nose failing? Or would that be your stomach?" He mused to himself before shaking his head. "It's not some four-star restaurant but I'd figure you might want some dinner in any case." As if in reply, her stomach rumbled in the quiet car and he laughed louder. "Seems I was right. And it turns out it _wasn't _your stomach failing you."

"Shut up." She growled in a mixture of annoyance and embarrassment. He only grinned, making her smile in return no matter how hard she tried not to. _'Annoying or not, at least he isn't sad anymore.'_ She unhooked her seatbelt and got out before instantly shivering as a cold gust of air blew through her school uniform skirt. When she looked back, Darien was holding her overnight bag by one of its straps.

"You're going to need this." He stated simply, "It's probably only going to get colder."

Her lips pursed in thought as she numbly accepted the bag. "Where are we?"

"Getting dinner?"

Her stomach immediately growled again at the reminder and he laughed once more. More annoyed than embarrassed this time, she glowered and slammed the door shut. A few seconds later, when he didn't do anything, she popped her head back inside the car. "Well, are you getting out or not?"

He shook his head in amusement as she closed the door again, practically bouncing from foot to foot. He chuckled as he walked around only to find her frantically rubbing at the corners of her mouth. "I was kidding about the drool."

She blushed, dropping her hand. "I know! I--I was just--- come on!" She tugged at his hand, dragging him to the diner. "You're too slow."

"Wow. Your father was right. You _do _get cranky when you're hungry." The withering glare she sent him over her shoulder only made him laugh harder.

"I am _not _cranky!" She snapped, slamming his stomach with the bag in her other hand in an attempt to get him to stop.

He only released an "Oomph!" that sounded more like a snort of laughter.

"So childish." She grumbled as she let go of his hand in favor of pulling open the diner door and walking in. She looked around curiously, seeing only a few people in the establishment which made turn around and grab her companion's wrist to look at his watch. _'5:33. Which means we've been trying for a little over two hours.'_ She looked up, her brow furrowed. "Where are you taking me, Darien?"

He gazed back at her almost impassively, his amusement completely under control again. "Somewhere important." He sighed, running a hand through his hair, and nodded over to the serving counter. "Go change. I'll wait for you over there."

She watched him walk away pensively. There was something about him today that was full of double meanings. It was like he wanted to tell her things but didn't --_couldn't_-- come right out and say it. She sighed as she made her way to the women's bathroom and not even ten minutes later, she was sitting down beside Darien on a stool. "Anything good here? I'm starving."

He glanced over at her only to smirk at her change of clothes. She was wearing pink jeans and the thickest, whitest turtleneck he had ever seen in his life. "Guess your mother didn't forget _all _her reservations." He muttered, "Subliminal message, much."

Serena's brow furrowed as she looked up from the menu she'd snagged from him. "What do you mean?"

He shook his head quickly. "Nothing, nothing. Find anything you like?" They were in one of those odd restaurants that seemed to have everything you wanted --be it local cuisine or foreign-- and you were almost guaranteed to have it to go. For Serena, it was probably heaven.

She eyed him before deciding he was just being weird. "Well, yeah." She frowned as she looked back down at the menu. "But I barely have enough money for a single French fry as it is…"

"Who said you were paying for anything? Shouldn't you be demanding I pay for your meal since I quote 'practically kidnapped' you, anyways?" He rolled his eyes as she stared at him blankly. "You're lucky I am such a gentleman. _I _am paying. So if you want something, order it, and I'll pay for it. It's that simple."

And, apparently, it _was _that simple because fifteen minutes later they were walking out and Darien had paid for everything. "Are you _sure _it's okay to eat in your car?" Serena questioned for what felt like the hundredth time, her plain white to-go bag clenched in one hand and her overnight bag in the other. "I--I don't want to…" _'Tarnish the memory of your parents with ketchup on the seats?' _She winced internally. Maybe she shouldn't have gotten the fries, chocolate milkshake, and the hamburger. She should have gotten something easier to eat. Like--like a chocolate bar from a convenience store or something…

"Trust me when I say I trust you." Darien sent her a small smile over the car but of course he was carefree; _he _had only gotten coffee and a small white bag, she grumbled to herself. "Just get in already, we still have about a forty minute drive."

Half of those forty minutes were the longest of her life, she was sure of it. She'd stuffed napkins into every exposed inch of her seat in hopes of avoiding getting crumbs or drips anywhere on the tan leather. It had helped and everything had been going well until she hit the last of her meal-- the milkshake. Somehow, someway, she managed to get a splash of chocolate on the door. She literally felt the blood drain out of her face as she looked at the incriminating drop. _'Oh, no! Strike three! He's going to throw me on the side of the road and I still have no clue where we are!'_

She swore she almost died when he made a sound. It took her a few minutes to hear over her pounding heart enough to realize it was laughter. "I thought the food would have calmed you down." He remarked, "Not make you tenser than before."

"I am _not _tense!" Her fingers itched to throw her overnight bag at him again, this time preferably at his face once they were safely stopped. She quickly placed the almost empty milkshake into a cup holder to avoid tossing it on him.

Darien chuckled. "You are. Do you hear yourself? Even while you were sleeping you were tense."

His gaze swung to him disbelievingly. "Why do you expect when I'm terrified of making a big fool of myself? _And _saying something wrong or inadvertently insulting your parents _again_!?"

His hands tightened on the wheel for the umpteenth time. "You haven't insulted or said anything wrong about them. How can you when you've never even met them?"

Her mouth dropped open incredulously. "I can say a million things wrong about them! Do you _not _remember the 'throw me in the ocean and drive away'-thing?" He winced, making her to sigh "See. Even the reminder makes you wince."

"No." He whispered, "It's not that."

She gazed at him expectedly, waiting for elaboration, but he stayed silent. She stifled a sigh and turned to blot the chocolate off the leather siding with a napkin. Seconds later, she looked up through the window and gasped in delight. "_Wow_. We really did go to the ocean…" She bit her lip, glancing over at Darien as a suspicion forming in her mind but decided if she _was _right, it would be best not to say anything just yet.

* * *

'_This awkward silence thing is killing me.'_ Serena thought to herself miserably as she rested her head against the window. Despite her fuss over the chocolate mess, it really had been only a minor thing and took less than a few seconds to clean up and, unable to help herself, she'd watched the rise and fall of the ocean in a kind of daze as they drove. But Darien had yet to say another word, despite them driving for another fifteen minutes and him having stopped at the lookout point almost five minutes ago. It gave her a better view of the ocean, sure, --_'It looks so majestic with the sitting sun behind it…'_ -- but wouldn't it be rude to just leave him inside while she went skipping out of the car? _'Especially when he looks all depr--'_

"Well, are you getting out or not?" She released a started yelp at the sudden comment, her head snapping over to see the aforementioned man leaning in from outside, a grin on his face. "You're too slow."

She instantly scowled. "It's not nice to turn people's words against them." He only shrugged and closed his door, making her grumble under her breath as she got out to join him. _'He's bipolar, I swear.'_ Her irritation melted as soon as she heard the crash of the waves, however, and she grinned as she raced over to the railing and looked down. They were at the top of a cliff, the bottom of it a sandy shore dotted with racks that the waves were crashing against. "Wow, it's so beautiful."

"I thought so too." She glanced back; Darien was standing half-way between the car and the railing, his hands stuffed in his pockets with his face turned down to the ground. "My dreams of the Moon Princess," He began so suddenly she jumped, "began a month after that first youma battle. _Every _night after that, she begged me to find a jewel. An ultimate source of power."

"The Silver Imperial Crystal."

He glanced up and the sunset reflected in his eyes, making her stare in awe. "Yes. I expected you would know what I was talking about." He smiled just a little before looking over to her shoulder to the ocean. "Anyways, all the dreams basically consisted of her begging and pleading with me to find the crystal. Constantly, she'd tell me she felt its presence in Tokyo, but never where."

She swallowed thickly. "Why-- why did she ask _you _to find it?"

"I have no clue." He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "That's actually why I agreed to help her in the first place. I was intrigued by her plea. A princess from some mythical Moon kingdom asking me --plain old Darien Shields, well if you ignored the Tuxedo Mask and having powers-thing-- to find the Silver Imperial Crystal because it had the power to free her."

"Free her?" The blonde blurted incredulously, "From _what_?"

"She refused to say. At least, until the last dream I had about her." He smirked, the action bitter. "I had snapped, I guess you could say, and ask why --if there was such a short time to find the crystal and free her-- she didn't give me any _useful _information. Like I was saying, she'd constantly tell me she'd felt the crystal presence in Tokyo but would never give me even a general direction to look in. Every time I told her I'd had no luck finding it, she just insisted I must be looking in the wrong places." He shook his head irritably. "There there was this damned fog that would block her from my sight so I had no clue what she looked like. She wouldn't even tell me her _name_."

Serena's brow furrowed. "You didn't know her name?" She shook her head. "That doesn't make any sense. If you're supposed to help her, you should know anything you possibly could about her. The Senshi and Luna knew her name. It's Serenity, remember? I know I mentioned it before; when we talked after Ami…"

"Serenity." He looked up at the blonde only to see another image superimposed over her. It was gone in the span of an eye blink though, so he just nodded his head at her statement. "Those were my thoughts exactly and by that last dream, frustration didn't even cover what I was feeling toward her. So, I pretty much told her to find someone else because I wasn't her lapdog and didn't have to obey her every whim."

Her mouth opened and closed a few times in disbelief. "You said that to the _Princess_? What did she do?"

This time his smirk was amused. "Surprisingly she agreed that it wasn't fair to me and ended up telling a story. The history of the Silver Imperial Crystal."

"Will--will you tell me it?" She asked, her eyes wide, "Luna never told us anything like that. She just gave us this kind of generalized history lesson."

He nodded to his car. "Come on. It'll be more comfortable to sit down somewhere before I begin." She bit her lip and hurried over, Darien sitting beside her on the cooled down hood after a moment of hesitation. He took a deep breath before beginning. "She told me this story:

"_**Eons ago, when the great Gods and Goddesses ruled, the universe was in what everyone believed to be eternal peace. At that time in history, all planets --from the desolate terrain of Pluto to the blazing infernos of the Sun-- were inhabited by life. The most powerful of these great people were the Lunarians; those whom lived on the Earth's Moon. They had incredible power but were a gentle and peaceful nation. **_

"_**That glorious universal peace lasted until a great war broke out between an evil entity and the very first Queen of the Moon; a direct descendant of the Moon's patron goddess Selene. The Queen managed to destroy the evil entity but with her victory came a terrible cost. After the battle, the Moon was left in a state of disarray. Ancient temples and buildings had been destroyed, crops ruined; overall the planet was in shambles. The Queen was at a lost of what to do, that is until the goddess granted her a blessing.**_

"_**Selene had been distraught when she saw the state her beloved people had been left in and was determined to see them healed. To do this, she took a beautiful silver flower from her favorite garden in the heavens, passing onto it a small portion of her power. Through her magic and the celestial flower, the goddess had managed to create the Silver Imperial Crystal --a great power that the Lunarian royal family would then use for millennia afterwards. Despite the crystal only possessing a fraction of Selene's magic, it was still incredibly powerful. Whole civilizations could be destroyed if the wielder chose to do so. Yet, the crystal also had the wondrous power to heal. **_

"_**Due to the goddess's gift, the first Moon Queen was able to restore the whole planet to its former glory and a beautiful temple was erected in honor and remembrance of the generous blessing bestowed upon her and her people. Yet, the former glory was soon not enough as the Queen realized how effortlessly the evil entity had broken through the Moon's defenses. She quickly set out to make the universe a more secure, peaceful place for everyone who inhabited it. Even when she passed on and her successor took over the planet, her desire for a peaceful life lived on. All rulers of the Moon Kingdom --Lunaria-- upheld the first Queen's desire and eventually a pact was made between all planets that joined them in a great alliance simply known as the Silver Alliance. The current Queen of the Moon would always be a the helm, a testament to how the Lunarian rulers were renowned for their fairness and great power. **_

"_**Peace reigned throughout the centuries until a cursed child was born. She would be the sole reason for the Silver Alliance's destruction. Everyone around her was fooled by her childish innocence and she eagerly used that to her advantage, becoming a disaster to the universe during her life. She managed to deceive the entire Silver Alliance into believing she was an innocent bystander in all her schemes. One of her greatest conspiracies was managing to steal the Silver Imperial Crystal from where it was housed on the Moon. Her most horrendous felony, however, was managing to imprison myself, the Lunarian Princess and heiress."**_

As he stopped, Serena gazed at the ocean with wide, unseeing eyes. "Oh my god… I'm that cursed child." She gazed at her companion disbelievingly. "I _have _to be. I _imprisoned _the Moon Princess and _stole _the Silver Imperial Crystal!" She squeezed her eyes shut as shock began to set in. "Oh my god. Oh my god."

Darien immediately grabbed her shoulders, shaking her slightly. "Did you _listen _to that story?" He asked, half-panicked, "Did it match up with what you and the Senshi were told?"

"No." She squeaked, peering open an eye slowly. She gasped, her eyes widening again. "No. It didn't."

He released the breath he hadn't realized he was holding; a mixture of acceptance and relief swelling up inside him as he dropped his hands from her shoulder. "She was lying to me, I'm almost positive of it. Maybe not all the way but something…something tells me that this 'cursed child' wasn't a villain."

"That story seems so familiar, though, like I've heard it before." She gazed at him, her head tilted to the side slightly. "But you're right. Something about it sounds… _wrong_."

"Yeah. I even told the Princess I suspected she was lying." He smiled wryly. "Then I went on to say that if she was foolish enough to get imprisoned the first time, what made me so sure it wouldn't happen again if I managed to find the crystal and free her?"

"You didn't!" She groaned, slapping her forehead, as he nodded with a grin.

"She called me a fool so I revoked my promise to help her. I haven't dreamed of her for a month, I can't imagine why though…" She gave him a dry look, making him laugh for a minute. "Okay, okay. Now it's your turn. Will you tell me that history lesson Luna gave you?"

She immediately nodded, telling him everything without an ounce of hesitance, and all the while he watched in concern as her gaze become blank as she talked about the Senshi and their duties; how the smile never met her eyes as she spoke of the princess and how she'd been heir to practically the universe; how confused she looked as she talked about Terrans --with the exception of the royal family-- being the _only _ones in the universe to live for such a short, approximate eighty years while everyone else seemed to live for centuries.

"So, yeah." She continued, "Luna also admitted she can't remember _exactly _what led up to the fall of the Moon Kingdom and the Silver Alliance but that she _does _remember the last few hours. At some kind of celebration on the Moon, the evil sorceress appeared with an army of youma while everyone was busy with the festivities. She killed the Senshi, then the royal family. As the Moon Queen, Selenity, was dying she used the Silver Imperial Crystal to grant her wish of everyone being reincarnated on Earth to live a peaceful life. Then she used the last of her power to seal away the sorceress and her army for what she thought would be an eternity. But, since the sorceress _obviously _broke out and has been unleashing youma and her dark Kingdom generals everywhere, Luna followed her mission of finding the Senshi and reawakening them. The Princess is supposed to destroy the sorceress with the Senshi's help, then what happens next is all up to her. She decides if the Senshi continue protecting her and if she'll reinstate the Silver Alliance --or at least her former kingdom-- or not."

Darien was silent for a few minutes as he compared the two stories. There were definitely similarities but there were also differences. _And _inconsistencies. "But, then, Luna suddenly began dreaming of you and the Dark Kingdom generals being all friendly a few weeks ago?" He leaned back on his elbows and shook his head. "That doesn't seem like the kind of detail that would be easy to forget."

"Well," Serena bit her lip. "she wasn't reincarnated like everyone else was. Queen Selenity gave her orders and instructions before putting her in a deep sleep. Ten thousand years is a long time to keep things straight in your head, I think." She shrugged. "Things just got jumbled and forgotten."

"Still, if it was real, I don't think I would have ever forgot. Let alone mistake you for being a Senshi in the first place." He sighed, running a frustrated hand through his hand. "And nowhere in that story mentions a 'cursed child' or Princess Serenity being imprisoned."

The blonde rested her chin on the top of her knees. "There's something I've always wondered. If the sorceress was so evil and jealous, why was she unwilling to harm her planet's rulers to gain that immortal secret? She doesn't sound all that evil to me for being so incredibly loyal to them."

"Valid point, and I agree." He mused, "This sorceress though, is she the Dark Kingdom's Queen --what's her name? Beryl?"

Her brow furrowed but she nodded. "Yeah, and it was… Jadeite, I think, that said something about how his queen was a great and powerful sorceress. The sorceress would have had to have been in charge of the youma --like a queen-- for them to have been organized enough to invade the Moon. Makes sense to me."

He blinked before smiling proudly. "Yeah. That makes sense to me too." He shook his head. "But nothing else does. Someone is _definitely _lying --either the Princess or Luna, maybe even both. And there's still this thing about Min--" He stopped, his eyes sliding over to his companion. "Hey, something just occurred to me. Minako is that English model who posed for Sailor V promotions and things, right?" Serena nodded, her brow furrowed in confusion. "Then… _Minako _probably isn't her real name, is it?"

She quickly shook her head. "Nope. Minako Aino is just her cover while she's in Japan. She said she didn't want the press or anyone else to find out who she really is and disrupt her life here." She frowned. "And she wasn't just the model that _posed _for Sailor V, she _was _Sailor V."

His eyebrows shot up, though admittedly he wasn't very surprised. "Really? Then how did she get her powers before the rest of you --let alone know she was a Senshi? Just a few minutes ago you said Luna was the one who realized who the Senshi were and gave them their powers."

"She… was." She replied slowly, a baffled look on her face, "I always wondered that too, but never got around to asking. Minako had only been in Tokyo for a few weeks before everything started happening, so it wasn't like I had many opportunities…" She shook her head. "It never made sense that she was Sailor _V _either, instead of just Sailor Venus." Her eyes slid to Darien as he remained silent. "What's wrong? Wait. You… think Sailor V was a ploy, don't you? In hopes of bringing the Senshi to _her_."

He winced but still nodded. "You need to consider the possibility. She shouldn't have had her powers before Luna's involvement. There's also the fact that she modeled and posed as her alter-ego. You have to admit it doesn't seem like she took it very seriously. She was more like an over glamorized law enforcement then anything else."

"Because she helped the police capture criminals and thieves. _Humans_." She murmured, "She mentioned how the youma she fought were only 'strays' --nothing serious." Her lips parted in a stunned silence as she wondered if Darien might be on to something, before shaking her head. "B--but she's _Sailor V_. She was practically my role model for--for _ever_!"

"Since before I met you." He agreed, "Sailor V had been fighting in England for some time--"

"One year and four months." She injected knowingly; she hadn't idolized the woman for nothing.

"--before any Senshi was ever awakened. From what I can remember, her fame was almost instantaneous in Europe and it didn't take very long to extend overseas either. But, after a while, she-- what _is _Minako's real name?" He questioned abruptly.

"Wilhelmina Rogers." She giggled. "Mina. Mina_ko_, get it?"

He rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Her fake Japanese name is genius. Must have taken her days to figure out." She shot him a dark look that he easily ignored. "I was going to say that after a while, Sailor V completely disappeared from the spotlight and not long after Min-- _Wilhelmina _left the country, according to you."

She nodded slowly. "Yeah. In August. About a week after…" A small, sad smile curved up her lips unexpectedly. "--after Makoto became a Senshi. A little over a month from now was when Venus joined us. And that tells us--" She paused for dramatic effect. "--_nothing_."

He opened his mouth to disagree before realizing she was right. "What I was _trying _to point out was that there was two months time between when she left England and when she joined the Senshi. You and I had been fighting youma since February, why in the world would she have waited until _August _to do something about it? Then wait until _November _to join everyone? And where was she those two months?"

The blonde frowned. "Maybe she wanted to wait to join us when everyone was together again, but something got in the way?"

He began nodding before his eyes flickered back over to her. "That implies she had knowledge of how many Senshi there are supposed to be. Knowledge she'd only have from an outside source or--"

"Or from memories of the Silver Millennium that she's lied to everyone about _not _having." Her jaw dropped in disbelief. Less than a second later, she scowled and slapped Darien's shoulder with a hand. "No way! You completely made her the bad guy here!"

His eyes flashed darkly. "Maybe she is. She had powers _before _Luna. Was a _Senshi _before anyone else but let the press glamorize her. It was _her _apartment where you were held _captive _for _days _in!" He was on a roll now, jumping off the car's hood to pace in front of the frozen teen. "She appears in Japan and _two weeks _later, you're labeled a traitor and _attacked_! She probably didn't even bat an eyelash when Princess Serenity finally appeared while I had no _clue _the Senshi were her protectors until Ami mentioned her at the hospital. There there's that argument she got into with Motoki at the arcade." His pace increased and he shook his head angrily. "And don't even get me started on Motoki because, no matter how much we don't want to believe it, I still think he's up to someth-- Serena?" He glanced up at her, afraid he'd gone too far when he saw how she'd hugged her legs to her chest and buried her face in the tops of her knees. He grimaced. "I'm sorry. You made it perfectly clear how you feel about my 'wild accusations', I should have been more--"

"No." She lifted up her head and, instead of tears as he expected, her eyes were filled with fear and confusion. "It's just… I think you might be right about Motoki. _Maybe_."

His eyes instantly narrowed as he walked up to her. "Why? Did he do something to you?"

"No, no! Nothing like that!" She quickly grabbed a hold of his sleeve to prevent him from charging to the driver seat. "But, you know the day we fought? Sunday?" As he nodded slowly, she absently let go of his shirt. "There was something that happened earlier that day. Something with Motoki."

"Go on…" He urged quietly, his whole posture stiff and tense.

She winced; why did it feel like she was tattling on her friend? Oh, wait, she was. She stifled a groan, but one glance at Darien told her that he wouldn't let her _not _tell him what happened. "I went to the arcade to tell him I was out of the hospital that morning but he, uh, was acting all weird."

"Weird how?"

"I--I asked a waitress where he was, you know Suki?" He nodded, vaguely remembering the teenager who constantly dyed her hair. "She said that he was off that day, and two days before, but he suddenly came in saying he forgot something while he was working the day in-between. She thought he was acting weird too --all _evasive_, she said-- so I know it wasn't my imagination."

His brow furrowed. "Evasive about anything in particular?"

She shrugged. "She didn't say, so I just assume in general. Anyways, she told me he was in the backroom looking for the thing he'd forgot but when I went back there, it was empty. I called out his name and he came rushing out from behind a pile of boxes. He was covered in dust; head to toe. Then he was just …_odd_. Eyes shifting around nervously, his smile plastic." She shrugged again. "Odd for Motoki."

"Did you look behind the boxes?" He frowned as she quickly shook her head. "And why not?"

She blushed in remembrance. "H--he, uh, distracted me before I could. Then I ran out and didn't stop until I was in the park."

His eyes narrowed in on her expression. "How did he distract you?" He immediately shook his head in dismay, not giving her the chance to answer. "Please don't tell me you were blinded by a charming smile and sparkling eyes. _Please_."

"Ew." She crinkled her nose. "Do the words 'like my brother' mean anything? I got distracted by what he _said_, not by his looks."

"Which was?"

"_Uh._"She squeaked, "Why we hadn't told him we were dating?" Her jaw dropped again, this time in indignation as he broke out into laughter. Deep, loud, very amused laughter that caused him to double over and hold his stomach. _"Darien!"_

"W-wait." He wheezed, but she could still hear the laughter in his voice, "C-can't breathe y-_yet_."

Her eyes narrowed and, offended, she jumped off the car hood. She towered over him, waving a menacing finger. "Oh, so now the thought of us dating is _funny_? Not long ago you were _revolted _by it!"

He chuckled a few more times before straightening out, a calm eyebrow raised. "When was I revolted?"

"When your friend --Rose's father-- asked if we were! You sure didn't act that way when Doctor Rupert assumed the same thing the day before that. I've been revolting you more and more by the day!"

The other eyebrow rose to join the first. "I don't think so. I was _laughing _because it's ironic everyone is assuming we're involved, given how we usually are around one another. I wasn't _revolted _when Neil asked, I was caught off guard because he'd just _met _you. As for Doctor Rupert?" He snorted. "Like I care what he thinks. The guy's a loon."

"Well _I _care!" She snapped back, "He's one of my doctors!"

"Well, he _shouldn't _be." His hands abruptly tightened into fists at his sides as a dark look filtered over his face. "You shouldn't have been hurt in the _first _place, and if that doctor does one damn thing to you, I'll make sure that Mars regrets even _thinking _of hurting you. Friend, guardian, or not --"

"What… what's _happening _to you?"

Darien stopped his rant at the sudden whisper, his head snapping over to Serena. His eyes met the sight of her, wide-eyed and pressed up against the grill of his car. "You're afraid of me again." He whispered in horror, stumbling back a few steps.

That, if nothing else, rattled the blonde out of her stupor. She quickly and frantically shook her head, taking a few steps closer to him. "No! Not you!" She took a shaky breath. "Of what's happening _to _you! A few months ago, you never would be shooting off threats and everything else. B-but now you actually beat up Motoki, your _best friend_, not to long ago. That isn't like you _at all_!"

He eyed her in disbelief, wondering if she'd finally gone crazy, before slowly the past month flashed through his mind. He stumbled back a few more steps, feeling his back hit the cold railing violently. It was true; ever since she'd gone missing for those few days, he'd been treating almost everyone he came across like they were conspiring against him. No, against him and _Serena_. "I…" He stopped, speechless.

"I wasn't afraid of you that afternoon." She whispered, feeling a cold chill blow through her as she stepped closer to him, "You just… you have to see things from _my _side. My whole world had been completely spun on its axis, then dumped upside down by then!" She took a deep breath. "One--one of my best friends had just _died_. All the girls but Ami _hate _me and think I'm some Dark Kingdom general's _wife_. My powers had been stripped away from me only days before. Then, to make that all _so _much better, I learned that I may be being slowly poisoned to death and have been since the first time I transformed--"

"And I wasn't helping you any when I called you naïve and told you how I'd been following you home from battles for months like some stalker. Not to mention accusing Motoki of scheming against you as well." He frowned, unnerved by this change of topic more than he cared to admit. Something was going to revealed --and he didn't think he would like it.

"Tonight's about honesty, right?"

He blinked in surprise before nodding. "Yes. Everything out in the air."

She sent him a small, sad smile. "Then, yes. That didn't help me. It just made me even more paranoid and worried than I already was. Then the next thing I knew, I was yelling that I didn't need you anymore. Which is something I will _always _regret." She looked at him sincerely, her eyes watery. "I _want _you around, protecting me or not. I _always _will. I was just-- I _still am _so used to being able to protect _myself _that when you kept insisting you would protect me, it was like a blow to my inability. Because, lets face it, I'm _completely _defenseless now and I have to rely on you more than ever, which puts you in even _more _danger than you already are in."

"I… I didn't mean for it to sound like that. Like a jab at the loss of your powers." He whispered, staring at her somberly, "I just wanted to make sure that you knew someone _would _protect you. Me."

She smiled sadly. "I know. I was irrational. Everything had finally taken it's toll on me."

"Huh. I suppose we were _both _irrational, then." He muttered, his brow lowering. "That day… once I found out what your powers had done to you, it was like a floodgate had opened somewhere inside of me and all these feelings and emotions flooded my thoughts and mixed up my beliefs. There were points in our conversation where I truly, _honestly _thought that Minako was to blame for every single thing that was going wrong and that Motoki was eagerly helping her along. It _was _irrational but I couldn't stop at the time." He smiled humorlessly. "It seems like I still can't, considering how I was just accusing them of things."

She chewed on her bottom lip nervously as he turned around and grasped the railing, looking down into the darkened ocean. "It wasn't just that, though. Your eyes… sometimes your eyes were _gold _when you were talking." She watched as he turned around, confusion obvious in his expression. "It's true. Y--you didn't sound like _yourself_. And--and it was the way you were talking, walking even!" She exclaimed, "It was like you but _not_, all at the same time. And I just-- I couldn't handle that on top of everything else."

"Gold… eyes?" He gaped before shaking his head. "Impossible. Wouldn't I have seen them before? Was that the only time you saw them?"

"No." She pursed her lips. "That day I first woke up at the hospital was when I really saw them. First when you told me I wasn't to blame for Makoto's death and then later. You know, when that perverted boy walked into my room while I was being bandaged?" His dark, narrowed eyes told her he remembered very well. "Both those times you kept getting gold flashes in your eyes. And that time you were studying at the arcade and ended up leaving because of how me and Motoki were looking at you? I think I seen a flash of them then too, but it all happened so fast so I'm not sure." She paused, her brow crinkling as she tried to remember if there were any other times she saw the gold eyes. "Oh! And when we ran into that rude woman on the street, your eyes flashed gold once. Right before you told her to swim with the fishes."

Darien's jaw had long since dropped. He was right; something had been revealed and he didn't like it in the least. "All those times…"

She nodded. "Yeah. It seems so random because I have no clue what was going on in that head of yours."

"No, they _weren't _random." He realized with a start, "You'd said you deserved to die like Makoto and I was just so _furious_ that you would say that and not accept you weren't to blame. And the boy, that damn perverted boy gawking at you like that." She blinked; was that _jealously _she heard in that growl? "Then that old woman had called you a bimbo. And that day at the hospital, I'd been livid from the second I realized what your powers had done to you and it only gotten worse as time wore on." He looked up at Serena with wide eyes. "All those gold flashes happened when I was _angry_. Even when I was studying at the arcade, I'd been thinking about one of the professors I didn't get along with."

Her mouth formed a perfect 'O'. "You're right. Every time it had happened you were all angry or, well, really intense. But, _what's _happening?" She asked almost desperately, "Are--are you being, like, _possessed _or something?"

"I--I don't know." He whispered, sheer confusion in his stance and facial expression. "Y-you said that I talked and walked different, what do you mean?"

"Like--" She faulted, her eyes narrowing in thought. "like you're _dignified_. I mean, more than you already are on a regular basis. Does that make any sense?" The blank look on his face told her it didn't. "It's just… you-- you stand _straighter _and you act like you could talk your way out of anything. Probably talk your way _into _something, too. Or make someone think what you want them to on a issue." She frowned, frustrated at her words. "Then there's this--this _accent _in your voice sometimes and your words are _different_. Like instead of saying 'hi', you would gold eyes would probably say 'hello'. Or--or instead of 'how are you?', it would be 'how do you do?'. You know what I mean?"

He nodded slowly, somewhat understanding. "…I definitely don't blame you for being scared of me. I'm starting to be terrified of myself." She instantly scowled, reaching out and slapping his shoulder. Startled, he released an "Ow!" and rubbed the spot.

"Didn't you _listen _to me!? I was scared but only of what's happening _to _you!" She thumped him again. "I'm scared _for _you, dimwit! I can't handle thinking you're suddenly going to decide to eat yourself for dinner on top of everything else that's happening!"

He blinked. "I highly doubt I would ever become a cannibal." He shook his head. "So, I haven't _done _anything to you? Or anyone else, that you know of?"

"No. You--you're just super intense. Like you know what you want and won't stop until you have it."

"But, then, what do he-- I-- _it _want? The only thing I can think of is-- is," He paused, staring at her, "is to protect you. I always got the gold eyes when I was angry _for _you. On your behalf. Like when the woman called you a bimbo, I knew you weren't going to defend yourself, so I wanted to." He whispered.

Involuntarily she felt her eyes mist over with tears. "Darien…" She sniffled, rushing up and squeezing him in an abrupt hug that he hesitantly returned. "You--you're so sweet in a way overprotective way. I mean, first with a superhero and now a split personality?"

He was tore between laughing and cringing at the sheer lunacy of the situation. "…If that's the case, I'm speechless but not surprised, honestly." He mused, "First it was Rei, then Luna--" He stopped, his arms tightening around her, as he realized something he should have long ago. "Ami confirmed the description of the human Luna. You've all but outright said it this entire time."

"I wasn't sure how to." She murmured against his stomach, flinching. "How do I admit out loud that my former guardian attacked me because my broach attacker _her_, thinking she was _me_? And that, because all that happened, it's probably safe to say I've been --maybe am _being_--- poisoned by my powers?"

"Not easily." He murmured before pausing, "But, that means someone else _saved _you. For you to wake up unharmed on that bench with Luna nowhere in sight, someone had to have intervened. It better not have been that fabled Dark Kingdom husband of yours--" He blinked, seeming to come out of a daze as he felt her shaking in his embrace. He grimaced, lifting his head up from hers and looking into her eyes. To his surprise, she was giggling. "…Serena?"

"Sorry," She giggled again as she stepped out of his embrace. "It's just, you sounded so jealous when you said someone else saved me."

He frowned but his eyes were gleaming with mirth. "Well, it _is _my job. Even my split personality and alter-ego say so."

She instantly laughed louder. "That---that," She gasped, "--is so _weird _to hear."

"It wasn't so great for me, either." He grimaced, laughing slightly, before sobering up. "Seriously though, what if it was --even though I hate the mere _thought _of it-- a Dark Kingdom husband?"

She gave him a half-sad, half-quirky smile. "Then I have to ask this: know anyone that could give me a quick divorce?"

He chuckled. "I think I might. My lawyer. I'll even spring for the charge, how does that sound?"

Instead of laughing as he expected, her brow furrowed. "Your lawyer. His name wouldn't happen to be …Arthur, would it?"

He rose a sharp eyebrow. "Now how do you know that?"

She grimaced, digging her toe into the asphalt. "Um, I have something of yours I think you really should have back." She raced back to the car, instantly grabbing her book bag from the back and digging into it. A few moments later, she triumphantly pulled out a paper before wincing and trying to straighten it out on her thigh as she sat in the passenger seat. "Sorry," She muttered as she looked up to see he'd followed her. She vainly tried to straighten it out one more time before handing it over. "I hadn't wanted to lose it in my room so I never took it out of my bag, but that might not have been the smartest idea…"

He frowned as he read the paper. _'The statement from the interview. I hadn't even noticed it was missing.'_ "Thank you for returning this. Crumpled and wrinkly or not." He looked up with a grateful smile before it slipped as he caught sight of her uneasy expression as she leaned against the open door. "What is it?"

"Are you really a millionaire?" She blurted before blanching, "No. Wait. That--that's really nosy. I have no right to know. I--I, uh, shouldn't have looked at such private information anyways. Ms. Haruna said it could be used badly--" Her eyes widened in horror. "Not that I would use it against you or anything! I promise!"

He laughed as he folded the paper again and slid it into a back pocket. "Easy there, Serena. I know you aren't going to blackmail me for money or something." He shrugged. "Besides, I'm not the millionaire. Not really. My parents, or well my father, was. It was just willed to me on the event of their deaths."

"Oh." She winced. "That--that sort of makes it your money, though, right?"

"Except for the fact that I didn't earn any of it. I just improved what already existed with stocks."

"But--" She bit her lip; why was she still talking!? "--the stocks had to have made money. That would have been what you earned. Your investments."

He gazed at her silently before chuckling. "Maybe, Serena, maybe." He crossed his arms across his chest. "My father invested in companies before…" He paused, a thoughtful look on his face.

"Y-you don't have to say anymore." She cringed.

He, in turn, rose an eyebrow. "Now why would I do that when I dragged you all the way out here?" He smiled weakly, nodding to the ocean. "Say hello to my parents."

Her eyes instantly softened. _'So I was right. This was where he scattered his parents' ashes.'_ "Thank you for bringing me out here. I know this place means a lot to you."

He shrugged, trying to act nonchalant. "I figured there was no better place to talk about everything. Since I told them I'm Tuxedo Mask and all." He turned to face the vast ocean, the last spokes of the sun illuminating it eerily. "I come out here at least once a year to update them on my life. It's always on my birthday, I thought it fitting because it's also the day they died."

She gasped, involuntarily taking a step toward him. "Oh, Darien…"

He glanced over at her murmur, a sad smile on his face. "Don't feel bad for me. I was oblivious to the fact for a long while." He turned back to the ocean pensively. "I forced Arthur to tell me when he found me at that orphanage when I was thirteen. He was none too happy, but I was because I could finally visit on the day of their deaths. I used to come on the anniversary of the day I woke up in the hospital but… it didn't seem very appropriate to me anymore."

"Because you felt you would be celebrating your life, not mourning their deaths."

His head snapped over to her in surprise before he ruefully shook it. "You know me too well."

"Not very, apparently." She whispered as she stood beside him, "Motoki let it slip you'd been in a some kind of serious accident when you were little, but I had no clue you'd gotten amnesia or lost your parents until recently. Let alone knowing it'd happen on your _birthday_."

"It isn't really information I volunteer out." He retorted quietly, "Only people that I trust know, or it's unavoidable like with Arthur and the directors of the orphanages I grew up in. …That accident happened not far from here, actually." He looked around, almost as if reminding himself what the area looked like, but she knew he didn't need to; it'd long been etched into his heart. "That's why I chose this particular spot when I scattered their ashes. I had no clue what my parents would have wanted, but I wanted them to have their final resting place somewhere meaningful. And, well, this place called to me." He paused. "I thought, and still do, that they would be happy in the ocean, being able to go wherever they want."

She bit her lip as she saw the blank look on his face. "A-are you sure you want to share this with me? Y-you don't have to. I'm not expecting you to, or pushing you to, or anything."

"Which is why I'm perfectly happy sharing this with you." He answered, sending her a ghost of a smile. "The question is, do _you _want to hear?"

In reply, she dropped down onto the asphalt and folded her legs, her hands resting on her lap demurely. "I'm all ears."

Almost against his will, he laughed as he sat down beside her and leaned against his car. "You're probably going to regret this. It isn't a very happy story."

"I won't regret it." She insisted, her eyes radiating concern and compassion. Not an ounce of pity, he noted thankfully.

"Okay then." He struggled to gather this thoughts. "I had never known the whole story, I guess the doctors thought I was too fragile. When I was thirteen though, Arthur showed up at the orphanage doors, armed with police reports and documents to prove who I was. I'd remembered my name was Darien and that was it. No family name, no address or telephone number. I couldn't even tell you how old I was exactly. For all those years, I'd been going by the name Darien Chiba for legality issues." His lips turned up ironically. "I couldn't have very well gone by Darien No-Name for all those years but, truthfully, I never accepted it. When Arthur came, I was revealed to be Darien Shields, son of Abigail and Henry Shields. You can guess by their names, I'm not Japanese." He shook his head in bewilderment. "Honestly, it's a mystery how I even _know _the language." His eyes slid over to her to see her gaping in surprise. He grinned, bumping her shoulder. "I bet you didn't expect that, did you? I was born in the United Kingdom, and lived there too."

She gasped. "No way!"

He chuckled. "Way. I have all the documents to prove it. When I was thirteen I went from Japanese orphan Darien No-Name to European orphan Darien Shields in a blink of an eye thanks to Arthur." He frowned. "Thank to him I, also, learned the full story of that accident. A drunk driver came swinging around a blind corner on the wrong side of the road. My father swerved to miss him only to end up flipping us over the side of an embankment." He paused, running a hand through his hair nervously. "We tumbled down the side of the mountain and probably would never have been spotted if it hadn't been for two things. One, the crunched guardrail and skid marks, and two… a bystander found the drunk driver's car tangled into the railing about a mile from where we went over. He died before ever making it into the ambulance."

His brow lowered. "As for my parents… the police followed the skid marks, found the guardrail, and spotted the car about five-hundred yards down." His fingers flexed against his thighs. "It was steep, very rocky terrain and the car had landed on its roof. They never expected to find anyone alive so I don't think they minded much that it took three days to find a way to safely propel down. My parents probably died on impact with the ground, maybe before. Myself on the other hand--" His lips twisted bitterly. "--had been found about twenty feet from the destroyed car. I'd been ejected from it miraculously and they think that's what enabled me to survive. So, while my parents' bodies were forced to be cremated because the damage had been so bad, I only had amnesia, a few bumps, and a broken wrist."

Serena bit her lip, glancing down at his wrists. "The cast no one signed…" She murmured, almost to herself. "That's what it had been from." She lightly touched the one closest to her --the left one-- before looking up at him with glossy eyes, trying not to cry. "I really would have signed it."

"I know." He tried to smile but couldn't so he just sighed. "I was unconscious so they shipped me off into a helicopter to Azabu General. Doctor Vigil, actually, had been my first doctor and the second I woke from the small coma I'd been in, he dubbed me his miracle boy." He grimaced. "Never mind the fact I couldn't remember a single thing except for basic skills and my first name. But I was alive, and that was a miracle in itself I suppose. I just hate being reminded of the fact my parents never got to miracles themselves."

"That's why it bothered you so much," She whispered absently, "when he called _me _a miracle. Because it reminded you of your parents…"

"Somewhat." He shrugged. "I spent months going from hospital to hospital, lots of things trudge of the feelings and memories I have of that time. Honestly, I think I was more bothered by the fact you _had _to be a miracle. Every time he called you one, I was reminded _why _you were in the hospital, what _condition _you'd been in. With my parents… I have pictures to see what they looked like but I have no memories of them full of life. You, on the other hand, are quite the opposite. No pictures, but plenty of memories. And when you were lying unconscious… you didn't have that life about you. You know," He said suddenly, "when you fainted, I'd left you with Motoki while I went home to get medical supplies. I'd told him, or rather ordered him now that I think about it--" He smiled humorlessly. "--not to take you to the hospital."

"Why?"

He looked over at her with those fathomless eyes of his. "I was afraid. Afraid that your injuries would lead to the discovery of your alter-ego. Afraid that if you went to the hospital, you would be diagnosed with some horrid, internal injury that I'd missed while I was taking care of you. Or, heaven forbid, _caused _you. That whole night was just one big blur of emotions. Anger. Fear. Worry. Distrust. Suspicion." He shook his head. "It's no wonder I took it all out on Motoki. I was panicked when he tried keeping me away from the hospital. Irrationally I thought that if I didn't get to you, you would die."

Her eyebrows rose. "Really?"

"Yeah. That's why I refused to believe him when he said you were okay. I had to see it for _myself_, because if you weren't, only I had the power to save you." His wiggled his fingers and obediently, a few healing sparks flared to life. "Why is it always gold?" He mused unexpectedly, "Gold powers. Gold eyes. I even have a gold transformation phase."

"Well, the term 'golden boy' had to come from somewhere. Maybe you were the original." Laughter bubbled out of his throat, making her grin. "You have to admit, you are pretty perfect."

He glanced over at her, amused. "During one of our arguments, you told me I was too cocky to be perfect."

She smile, bumping his shoulder. "Well, then you're pretty close to _being _perfect. The cockiness just proves your human to the rest of us."

His smile dimmed. "Trust me, I'm very human. Which is why I am now apologizing for being so… _weird_. It's been a weird kind of day."

Her brow furrowed as she noticed just how tense he was. It was something more than telling her about that horrible accident. "Did something happen?"

He shrugged half-heartedly. "I received a call this morning. From Mrs. Taiko." He looked up and met her eyes. "They made their decision about Hotaru… and me getting her guardianship or not."

"What did they say?" Her eyes darted around his face nervously as she held her breath.

Surprisingly, he smiled wryly and shook his head in amusement. "Apparently Mr. Nihou --he was the last of my references. He ran the last orphanage I lived in." He elaborated as he saw her confused expression, "--sung my praises Wednesday."

A slow smile stretched across her face the second all the breath left her in a 'whoosh!'. "So they said yes?"

He nodded before catching sight of her giddy grin. "Now don't get too excited," He warned, "they just agreed to let a judge hear the case. He, or she, will be making the _official _decision."

She pouted but the sheer happiness she felt for both Hotaru and Darien caused her smile to return not long after. "Well, when is all this going to happen? Soon? Shouldn't it be, cause they said that Hotaru can't stay at the hospital for much longer?"

"Yeah." He shook his head, seeming to come out of a reverie. "Tuesday, around two in the afternoon, is when the judge will make his, or her, decision."

"And that'll be all?" She asked eagerly, "Then Hotaru's will be your ward that day?"

He shrugged briefly. "From what I understand and if the judge rules in my favor, then yes. Mrs. Taiko told me that they handed over the case files as soon as their decision had been made yesterday afternoon. It gives the judge a few days to review before telling everyone the decision."

She laughed, throwing her arms around his neck in a squeeze, and let out a joyous scream. _"Finally!"_ She smiled down at him but instead found him staring at the ocean, a brooding expression on his face. "Darien? What's wrong? Aren't you happy?"

"Of course." He glanced up at her with a smile but she easily saw the turmoil in his eyes, so she narrowed her eyes pointedly. He sighed. "I am happy, honestly. It's just… I'm worried that the judge won't rule in my favor. I mean, look at me!" He suddenly exclaimed, gesturing to himself. She dropped her arms, sitting on her knees but he continued on. "I'm an eighteen year old that has no family to speak of! I haven't the foggiest clue who my parents were, only some pictures and money to get me by. I only have three friends in this entire world because I learned early on to rely on myself and myself _alone_. What kind of life would I be giving Hotaru? The judge will see that as soon as I walk into that courtroom."

"You would give her a great life." Serena whispered after a few moments, "One filled with a man who cares for her deeply and knows exactly what she's going through. A man who, even though he has only a few friends, he cares about deeply and fiercely. A man that would never let anything harm her and would fight tooth and nail to make sure she had everything she needs, even at the cost of his own dreams." Her eyes softened as he looked up at her. "At my meeting they told me what promise you made --about giving up your schooling to take care of her. That right there tells me all I'd ever need to know. You would do _anything _for Hotaru. You'd make a great guardian --and a father, if it comes to that." She added somberly. He stubbornly stayed staring at his hands so, pursing her lips, she reached out and grabbed his face in-between her hands and pulled it up. "Now you listen to me, Darien." She said firmly, watching in satisfaction as his eyes briefly widened in surprise, "Just because you may not have any living blood relatives, does _not _mean you don't have family." The look in his eyes told her otherwise. "Fine. Tell me something, then. What do you know about your parents?"

He looked at her dumbfounded, but still complied. "Not much. My father was born in the United Kingdom like me, my mother somewhere in America. They met on a volunteer mission in Africa and ended up keeping in touch. She moved to the U.K., they got married eventually and had me. My dad had a lot of money, apparently, and they used it to volunteer everywhere. That's probably why we were in Japan. Volunteering. Arthur said he liked to call them 'Super Samaritans'." He shook his head as much as he could in her grip. "And that's all I really know."

She nodded. "Okay. Now close your eyes and think of one of those pictures you have of them." He rose a dubious eyebrow, looking at her like she was crazy, but she only narrowed her eyes. _"_Just humor me and _do it_." After a hesitation, he did. "Okay, describe the picture to me. Tell me anything you know about it."

'_She's finally lost it.'_ He decided, giving up on trying to understand her. "According to Arthur, I was about four. We were somewhere in… New Zealand, I think. We were visiting a hospital."

Almost against her own accord, her eyes began to slid closed. "What was happening in the picture?"

"I was sitting on my father's shoulders. With my mother standing beside us."

"Expressions? Mad, happy, sad? Or just neutral?" He peeked an eye open, eyeing her disbelievingly, but a quick demand of "I _said _close your eyes." caused him to quickly shut it.

"Happy, I guess." He shrugged. "It looked like I was laughing."

"Your parents?" Her brow furrowed as she saw a flash of something dart across her mind. A little black-haired boy? Unknown to the both of them, her fingertips began to pulse a slight silver as they rested against his cheeks.

"Mom had her hand over her forehead but it looked like she was trying not to laugh." He answered absently, having long ago memorized the photo. "Dad was making an odd face at the camera. You know, crossed eyed. His tongue sticking out. That kind of stuff."

"Now, what do you feel when you think of your parents?"

"Loved." His eyes instantly snapped open only to find Serena's fluttering open as well, the silver light going unseen by both as it twinkled out of existence.

The blonde blinked a few times, her head feeling unexplainably hazy, but she quickly smiled. "See, I _told _you you have family. Maybe not in flesh but in _spirit_."

His mouth open and closed a few times as she dropped her hands and sat back. "I--I called them Mom and Dad. I've… never done that before."

"Because you didn't _feel _for them." She answered without hesitation, "You think you're seeing and hearing about _people_, it's like your brain forgot to connect that they're your parents." She reached out and tapped the skin above his heart. "But that, it never forgets even when the mind does. I got you to think with your heart inside of your brain."

He gaped for a little longer. "I called them Mom and Dad… and I really felt _loved_ by them. I never have when I was thinking about them. Just… blankness."

"Feelings aren't like memories. You may have lost your memories of your parents but that doesn't mean you lost your feelings for them. _Or _the impression of their feelings they left on you. It's all just a little …_lost _right now." She smiled. "But that doesn't mean they can't be found. Besides," She suddenly declared, "_I'm _your family too! After everything we've been through together, we can't be anything _but_. And, you know, the saying 'my family is your family'. And, since this all happened in the first place," She gestured around her pointedly. "you _know _my parents have to like and trust you. And my brother's already on the way to worshipping you, anyways, since I said you came up with the nickname Odango Atama."

He gazed at her, feeling something that he couldn't describe. "Serena," He paused, smiling softly. "Thank you for being so… _you_."

She giggled, shrugging slightly. "Well, no one can be a better me than me."

"It's more than that." He acted on an impulse, reaching over and brushing a few of her bangs out of her eyes. "In one conversation, you've made that feeling _go away_."

She watched him curiously, trying to ignore the heat in her cheeks from his actions. "What feeling?"

A side of his lips curled upwards in a semblance of a smile. "You inadvertently brought it up earlier." He gestured with his chin toward the ocean. "Every time I came out here before, I would tell my parents about what was happening in my life but, inside, I felt like I was just throwing in their ashes all over again and walking away."

"I _knew _I'd said something wrong…" Her eyes watered for the millionth time that night. "You--you know I didn't mean anything like _that_ when I said you were going to throw me in the ocean and drive away, right? It--it was just--just…"

He laughed, grabbing her shoulders. "Calm down. I know you didn't mean anything; you hadn't known. It's fine. Besides, you made that feeling go away. Now, now I feel every time I came out here, it was like I went home and had a conversation with them. That they've actually been _listening _to me."

She smiled watery. "That's a good thing."

"Very good." He agreed, "And all thanks to you."

She blushed, bowing her head under the intense look in his eyes. "Well, I don't think I really did anything. I mean, you're the one who decided to bring us out here any_ways._" She squeaked the last bit as he leaned over and kissed her cheek. Wide-eyed, she placed a hand over the burning flesh, watching as he leaned back slowly. "W-what?"

A blush slowly crept into his own cheeks. "I… don't know." He chuckled quietly. "I think I might be going through some type of Odango withdraw. A week without seeing you was a long time."

Her eyes widened in surprise. "You called me Od--" The rest of her sentence was swallowed in a gasp as he abruptly seized the back of her neck and pulled her into a kiss. It was frantic and desperate, as if Darien expected her to push away, but as she began to increase the pressure from her end, it quickly became soft and slow. It was like the world was at a standstill, waiting for the two of them unhurriedly.

Darien felt undeniable relief as Serena begin to return his unexpected kiss, her head tilting to the side slightly. He wasn't sure where he was going with this, so he kept it as light and unintrusive as possible. Though that quickly began hard to do as her hands slide up around his neck, fiddling with the hair there absently. _'Now, why haven't we done this before?' _He wondered, his hands sliding down to her neck.

For Serena, the kiss was like the one that woke Sleeping Beauty. Or the one that Cinderella received from Prince Charming. Or the one that Snow White received from _her _prince charming. Absolutely, blissfully… _perfect_. Her lips curved into a smile as she struggled to ignore her lungs' burning demand for oxygen. _'We should have done this __**ages **__ago…'_

* * *

"_So," _Serena watched with a gleeful grin as Darien jumped in his seat. They'd been stopped in front of her house for a few minutes and, for the most part, had been quiet since _**"The Kiss" **_(she thought it deserved big, bold, italicized capital letters in her mind; it wasn't an everyday occurrence after all). By some miracle, she'd quickly found that it wasn't in embarrassment or awkwardness, but in _contentment_. So they'd had no problems sitting side-by-side and talking (after their dazes were gone, of course) a little longer about all they'd learned from one another. Of course, they'd only ended up deciding it would be best to think of a plan of action later, when they weren't so mentally exhausted. And when the wind wasn't freezing them.

Yet, she hadn't been able to leave until she'd walked to the railing and paid her respects to his parents, silently telling him what a wonderful son they had and how proud they would be of him; how proud _she _was of him. Then she'd dropped a white rose she'd requested from Darien into the ocean before settling in the car to give him private time with his parents. And ever since then, she'd been thinking about, well, everything that had happened.

"So…"

It was her turn to jump, a blush forming on her cheeks as she looked back at Darien's inquiring look. She hadn't finished her comment. "Oh. Um." She laughed, rubbing the back of her head and letting her eyes wander to her house nervously. It was light up like it was trying to land a jet again. A quick glance to the dashboard clock told her it was because it was 11:42. "Well, we made it with twenty minutes to spare." She tried to grin as she looked over at him, but the thick atmosphere felt like it was choking her. Apparently the awkwardness had waited to appear.

His eyes slid from hers to the house. He could see a shadow standing in the window before it was quickly pulled away. "Somehow, I don't think your parents are too happy about that little fact." He grimaced suddenly. "Hopefully it's not because they figured out I lied to them this afternoon when I came to pick up your overnight bag."

She blinked in surprise. "Huh?"

He smiled over at her sheepishly. "Technically, I was only given their permission if _you _had agreed as well. But, because I always seemed to be running one place or another, I never could ask. I was so determined that we have that conversation, though, that I kind of told your mother that I'd asked and you'd agreed."

She stared at him for a moment before giggling. "You're lucky I had a good time, so I'll cover for you."

It was his turn to be surprised. "You had a good time?"

"Sure." She smiled. "The heavy conversation wasn't the ideal choice but it was nice out there. Just the two of us, _talking_. We've never done that. I--I liked it." She was sure she was blushing even to her toes.

He grinned. "I liked it too. We will have to try it again soon, without the depressing topics." He paused. "That is, if we're okay again?"

She turned to face him slightly. "I think so but… we've been avoiding something that happened back there. And don't you _dare _pretend you don't know what I'm talking about, mister!" She added fiercely.

"Trust me. I can't stop thinking about our kiss." He looked up with horrified eyes, a blush on his face. "I--I mean…" He groaned, choking on a laugh. "Sorry. I'm no good at this. It was just… unexpected. We went out there to fix our tentative friendship and then…"

"…that happens." She whispered, "My first kiss was with the guy I used to love to hate. Before we openly became friendly and he revealed to me that he was Tuxedo Mask. I can't even handle regular teenage stuff!" She exclaimed, "How am I supposed to handle th--_that_!" Her eyes swung to his, feeling as startled as he looked. She swallowed thickly, "…I--I don't know what to say. I honestly don't."

"Then," He began with a soft smile, "we'll take it slow. We'll deal with everything else that is happening around us and let… _this_," He gestured between the two of them. "happen as it does. No pushing it, or rushing it. Just take things one day at a time."

"Okay." She breathed a sigh of relief she didn't even know she was holding, nodding. "Okay. That sounds good to me. One day at a time. No pushing, no rushing. Okay. I can do that."

He chuckled. "So we're good?"

She grinned. "Very good. Everything out in the open. I know about your princess dreams. You know I'm not scared of you--" She stopped, eyeing him with narrowed eyes. "You _know _I'm not, and have never been, scared of you, _right_?"

He nodded. "Yes. Just _for _me because I happen to have a split personality with golden eyes. Got it."

She rose an eyebrow. "I just love how you can say that so calmly."

"Thank you?" He grinned, chuckling. "If it makes you feel any better, I'm still in a state of emotional shock from the entire week. From deciding to bring you out there and tell you about my parents, to the kiss… just give me a few days to absorb it all." He frowned as he caught her chewing on bottom lip nervously. "Serena, just to make one thing perfectly clear, I _didn't _regret our kiss." Her eyes darted up to his, her lips parting in surprise. "I never will. No complaints either; you had to have seen the stupefied expression I was wearing as I talked to my parents."

She smiled shyly. "And the way you fumbled three times trying to get the key into the ignition?" He cleared his throat and looked out the windshield. She couldn't see the blush in the darkness, but she knew it was there. "I'll take that as a 'no comment'." She giggled.

"Yeah… well…" He stopped, shaking his head. "I'm so out of my element right now, it's not even funny."

"I don't know about that." She grinned. "I think it's kind of cute that you're all tongue-tied."

He turned to her, an eyebrow raised. "Cute, huh?"

She instantly blushed. "I'm going through my own type of withdraw or something. I've been thinking weird things since I saw you this afternoon." Her eyes slid to him, a glare on her face. "Thanks for that, by the day. I'm going to be the talk of the school Monday."

He grinned proudly. "You're welcome."

"Wasn't thanking you." She grumbled, "I _still _can't believe you picked me up like that! And kissed my cheek before you closed the door! Everyone is going to think we're dating!" She paused, glancing over at him curiously. "Are we?"

His brow furrowed. "I… don't know. I mean, it's not like we date other people." He grinned over at her. "Of course, you told me you couldn't date until you're married anyways."

"Ha-ha." She rolled her eyes and looked over to the house, seeing two shadows in the window before they disappeared. "I'd still love to see how that'll happen."

He stayed silent, not saying what he wanted to. _'If you really are married to a Dark Kingdom general, I guess that means we would be able to date.'_ He grimaced. _'After I kill the man for causing you so many problems, that is.'_

She suddenly sighed, a wry smile on her lips as she watched the shadows reappear, this time not leaving. "I guess that means they're getting impatient."

He chuckled as he followed her gaze and caught sight of the two. "I guess so."

"Better take my leave before the clock strikes midnight, then." He continued to chuckle as she reached into the back and grabbed her two bags. She turned back around to find her face close to his, an intense look in his eyes. "Thank you." She whispered as she kissed his cheek, "For everything. The dinner. Bringing me out there. Telling me about your parents… It means a lot that you would share all that with me."

"No problem. I trust you." He smiled. "Maybe one day I'll get the courage to tell you everything else that's happened in my life."

"I'd like that." She groaned as she looked back, seeing her parents openly staring, the light now turned on in the living room behind them. "So _embarrassing_." She opened the door, smiling back at him one last time. "See you soon?"

"Soon." He agreed, watching as she got out and began to close the door, before suddenly leaning over. "Serena! Wait!"

She bent down, a confused look on her face. "Yes?"

"You're welcome to come if you want. To the courthouse to hear the decision, that is." He offered hesitantly, "If you can get out of school and all…"

She smiled brightly. "You wouldn't mind?"

"No, of course not." He paused, before plowing through. "I… want you there."

"Then I'll be there." She grinned happily, waving. "See you Tuesday then, if we don't run into each other beforehand." She closed the door, but not before his "Hopefully not violently." comment drifted up to her ears. She grinned, desperately trying to ignore how she felt like she was walking on air and how she wanted to skip to the door. At least, she would ignore it until Darien had driven away so he wouldn't see her making a fool out of herself. She'd managed to do well, her hand on the door handle and preparing to turn it, when his voice rang out in the cold air.

"It seems I forgot something."

She gasped, spinning around to see him behind her. "Huh?"

He lifted a hand, revealing the small white bag he'd gotten from the diner. "Another sweet confectionary concoction for you. A slice of chocolate cake. I seen it at the restaurant and got it for you, but it seems I forgot to actually _give _it to you."

"Oh." She numbly accepted the bag, her heart pounding in her ears. "Thank you."

He grinned, shaking his head. "You're welcome." He turned to leave before suddenly stopping. "Ah. One last thing." He leaned down and kissed the corner of her mouth. "My first kiss was with a girl I affectionately like to call Odango Atama." He whispered into her ear before leaning back, chuckling at her stunned expression. "Just don't tell her, okay? That would be embarrassing."

"_Okay._"She squeaked, nodding dumbly. She watched him walk away before he looked back halfway to his car, winking at her with a grin, before he laughed again and continued on.

'_We were each other's first kisses...'_ And she proceeded to sigh, literally feeling herself melt against the door she was leaning against. She was only glad that he had driven away by the time her mother opened the door and she fell inside the house in a flurry of bags. Now _that _would have been embarrassing.

* * *

"You must prepare faster. There is not much time left."

Artemis released a muffled shout as he turned around to find the Senshi of Time standing in his office. He clutched his chest, feeling his heart's frantic beat. "You're going to give me a heart attack one day." He complained with a glare, "And I'm preparing as fast as I can."

She didn't narrow her eyes or show any other outward sign of annoyance but he could feel the air change with the emotion. "Then I will not hesitate again. Do not presume King Endymion will hesitate, either. Know this, if Luna attacks my queen once more, then you will have lost your soul mate. By my own hands or by those of King Endymion."

"_WHAT!?"_ He watched as the woman tilted her head slightly before she began disappearing from his sight. "Wait! Pluto, what do you mean Luna attacked Serenity!?" He reached out to grab her hand but his own went right through her form before she vanished altogether. "Damn it, Pluto! Come back! I know you can hear me!" When nothing happened, his teeth grounded together and punched the corner edge of his desk. The rattling and shaking of his belongings didn't give him the satisfaction he expected, making him rub his temples irritably. "Damn it, I wish that infuriating woman would have just _stayed _a myth."

* * *

Done: June 2, 2009 11:00 pm.

Posted: June 2, 2009 11:45

…And, since it's not yet midnight here, that means Happy Birthday to me still! I wanted to make sure that this was posted as a nice gift for everyone else out there. :) Nothing really to say except that I hope you guys enjoyed this (monstrous, horrible, but sweet) chapter. Please R/R, always appreciated.

Last words: THEY KISSED! _FINALLY! _--insert fangirl squealing--

_Tiger Celeste._


	30. Chapter 30

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

I'm starting to sense a pattern… another thirty page chapter, when I was so sure it was going to be decent sized! Next chapter, however, I know is going to be short because it's been written for, like, two months. Hehe. You're gonna like it; I just need some editing and a few scenes to had and hopefully that'll be it.

But, since _this _chapter is long, I had to make some decisions. Either review responses or the chart (yeah, it's like three pages) that was requested. It had to be review responses, sorry! Having to respond to three chapters of reviews isn't so great for me. :(

Chapter 28 reviews---

_General answer_: Hehe, I guess I answered when Serena and Darien were supposed to make up! And you'll just have to keep an eye out for what'll happens with Ami and whether her questions will get her into trouble with Faux-Serenity or not… Thanks for all the reviews!

**Sonar de Mercury**: Yeah, the blood's for testing; not vampirism. Lol. :) Not DNA testing though, more like regular testing for abnormalities. Poisons are abnormalities and the generals know how to find them.

**White Ivy:** Don't worry, I'm slowly working out the maze this story is. Then everything will make sense, if not, well, I'll probably end up writing some big AN explaining it anyways! Lol.

**Butterfle:** (Well, I suppose this is really for chap 27, but that's okay!) You find out what Áine was looking for in Makoto's apartment this chapter, right off the bat. You'll find out about that painting of Psycho Luna eventually. It should be explained when the generals make their final explanations to Darien… Minako doesn't have to use a pen to transform, it just happens. And… the only ones to still be alive from the Sil-Mil are Áine, her boss, and Artemis and Luna (both were put in a deep sleep). I guess the Evil DK generals too, but not the good ones.

**Comet Moon**: Seriously, next chapter your chart is coming. It's been done practically since I saw your review asking for it, so I could send it to you if you want? If not, it _will _come next chapter. I'll cut out scenes if I have to!

**Crazineko1**: Nope, the fake Serenity isn't Nehellenia. :) The glamour fading shouldn't be that much of an issue now, since Serena cut her hair and all…

**Butterfle:** Hi, again! Lol. The games Valkyrie and Áine were playing were what got them into trouble. It's like that phrase: don't mess with fire. They messed with _a lot_ of fire and got burned as a result. And they're not that much older than the rest of the Inner Senshi. Just by a few years. I like realistic things and I always wondered at the probability of _all _of them being the same age. So I added some variety and made a few of them a little older; besides, it gives me more creative freedom. Like Áine being pregnant once upon a time and Rose being born… Haha, yeah. Rose was cute with the "shit!" thing. Kunz's been doing his secret duty; he should make an appearance in a few chapters, I believe it was. Artemis is gonna arrive, eventually. Right in the nick of time and he wouldn't be able to smooth things over. Not at all. Thanks for the reviews!

**Carpet Blues**: It's like Áine will hint at in this chapter, the gems she's trying to break out are the source of the senshi's powers. Once they get the gems back inside their bodies, they'll be back at full power. That's why Áine stopped collapsing when she used the "Stunning Whip of Wrath!". Before, it was like too much of a power surge going through her body; the gem makes that surge stop --gives her more power and control. …That's the best I can explain it. :(

**Akan Tsubasa:** Well, welcome to the story! I'm glad you like it!

**JB:** Lol, well I suppose my answer is coming a little late than you'd hoped. Sorry about that, I just can't get a reign in on this long chapters. --sheepish smile-- But, you are absolutely correct: Luna should be being held accountable for Sailor Moon's existence. But, I mean, it isn't as if Rei (in all her self-centeredness) or Minako (with all her problems) are going to point that out. Ami is the one most likely but as of right now, she's too timid. Serena and Darien would, of course, but that's just them and they can only lament to each other really. Hehe, did I make up for the lack of Darien with last chapter? Got anymore questions? :)

**Valkyrie Celes:** Well, the Senshi and good generals are aiming (or, will) for the same goal of stopping the Faux-Serenity. They're not very united right now, unfortunately. Lies, even if they're in the sake of something good, can be horrible things and they just might learn that the hard way… Well, fake Serenity _is _from the manga. No one's guessed who she is, though. I kind of hint at in this chap, so watch out for that. :)

**Belle Usako:** You know, you're reviews of the first three chapters sure came in handy! I'd actually been updating earlier chapters around that time, too. So I put your suggestions to good use. Thanks for them!

**Whitelight72:** Hmm. I think you're about right. Something wrong with Rei, there are two versions of every general but Kunz; well-- _Endy _is aware that he's in Darien's body, Darien isn't. Valkyrie is missing, yes, and Áine betrayed everyone in the Sil-Mil. And Serenity is just slow in coming out, she will soon enough. And then there will be fireworks… But, no Outers except Pluto and Hotaru. The other two are coming in the next story. :)

Chapter 29 responses---

_General answer_: Thanks for all the b-day wishes! :) And I'm glad everyone was excited by Dare/Sere's kiss. Now let's hope I won't write them all awkward… well, I guess they kind of are since they didn't really "define" what kind of relationship they had… Thanks for the reviews!

**Lady Clark-Weasley of Books:** Hehe. I liked your reaction to their kiss. Got to love those fan girl squeals, lol. Pluto will come back, eventually (I have to explain how she's in a coma and _not_, at the same time. Right?) but for right now, it's just to Artemis. But she will give Hotaru that much needed hug, I just need to get to the right date… so far away! Agh! As for Makoto/Val… I think you'll be very happy with the end of this chapter. And now I will leave you in suspense…!

**Tryntee13:** Nope, I won't make them start fighting with each other. Serena and Darien are in a good place right now, and I don't want to screw that up. :)

**Comet Moon:** o.o …Did I really make Darien sound like a holier-than-thou jerk? Because I don't get that vibe but if you did, there has to be a reason… Anything in particular make you think that? Same with her parents?

**KageNoNeko:** Give me a few chapters and Darien will be sure to know about Serena's nightmares. And, yup! Artemis is going to be needed in Tokyo, now if only he'd hurry up about it…

**Aleric:** If they could get all together, then the truth and then some would come out. But, unfortunately, they aren't. They are too many factors in the way. It's like I told Valkyrie Celes --Lies, even if they're in the sake of something good, can be horrible things and the generals just might learn that the hard way… Actually, the number of people who know the truth is _four_; the Faux-Serenity, Áine, Endymion, and Pluto. Beryl too, I suppose, but in the grand scale of things she can be pretty downsized. If the real Serenity ever emerged out of Serena, she would be the sixth person. But, yeah. Minako isn't working with the fake-Serenity because her child was half-Terran, nor because it was killed in the first place. You're absolutely right, if it was my child I wouldn't stop until I got my revenge either and Áine was the same way (hehe. Just wait until Kunz finds out!), but there's another factor you have consider. What if Áine was _incapable _of getting that revenge? What if something was in the way, or she was physically unable to? And the woman lying in the bed, while Pluto is talking to Artemis, is Pluto. She is the Senshi of _Time_, right? Hehe. Unfortunately Bellona isn't going to wake up from her coma until the continuation, but something might happen to her via Rei coming up soon enough… I'll let you chew on all that. :)

**Butterfle:** Pluto will wake up when she thinks everyone is ready for the change. She likes being infuriating, as Artemis knows. :) She meant "prepare for the big battle". As of right now, he still has his cat form but I don't plan on bringing it to the forefront anytime soon. Maybe near the end, but I see more of a possibility in the continuation. And why he and Luna were separated is hinted at in this chapter, with the Faux-Serenity --as well as why Luna's memories are so screwed up. The real Serenity is quiet, but she won't be for too long. She's been slowly leading up to her own emergence. And Makoto coming back… well, you'll just have to read through the chapter!

**TabbyKit:** I think Serena got _everyone's _perfect first kiss. Seriously. But she's been waiting for long, so I figure it had to be pretty damn good. Lol. :) Yeah, I always thought that Serena's powers were more like "let me heal your heart" --Endy's are more like "let me heal that cut". You know, you're the only one that seemed to catch onto how I was hinting at her powers right there. The silver glow _was _her powers and she really did see a flash of a little dark-haired boy, so what does that tell you? If it came down to it, she might be able to find Darien's memories for him. I want her to, but I don't know if she actually should… Hmm.

**Sailor Nightingale:** I mentioned a bus when I introduced Hotaru and Pluto? --scratches head-- I honestly can't remember that. But, no, Hotaru's death happened in the Sil-Mil. She's just been staying with Pluto since then. The little girl was just a visitor at Rei's temple. You know how in the anime Jed transported all those buses? In my story that happened but a little girl died when one of the buses fell out of that dimension. It was originally something that Tuxedo Mask and Sailor Moon were supposed to bond over, but it kind of got dropped.

**Ally0212:** Actually, I know just what you mean. Darien and Serena should be more sweet to each other, but nothing over the top and all super lovey-dovey because that's not how I do things. And you're right, I'm not much for super exaggerated stuff so they'll be just the right amount of sweet and teasing. :)

**Valkyrie Celes:** Ooh, I actually wasn't referring to Eternal Sailor Moon. I was foreshadowing, hehe! I love foreshadowing because then I can completely have this "I told you so!" persona while I read the reviews. Lmao. Whoa, if you think that was an evil cliffhanger (It wasn't actually, hehe), I am going to be in a world of hurt when it comes time for the big battle. Agh! I can't wait until I get to then, it gives me goose bumps just thinking about _that _cliffhanger!

Whew! That took more pages than I expected. Nothing much else to say but I hope you enjoy and there'll be a little hint to the question "Where the heck has Makoto been!?" at the end of the chap.

On to the story~!

* * *

Áine slowly slid her eyes over the four jewelry cases on her bedroom dresser. She gave into the urge to growl as she came upon the last two; they were empty. Both the emerald and the kunzite were still trapped without a way to break them out. _Yet_.

She supposed she should be glad that her plan had worked in getting Albreda's sapphire out. The Mercury Mini-Computer was one of the girl's most treasure belongings and, as an added bonus, had the insignia for Mercury inscribed on it. It _felt_ like Albreda and that's exactly what she had hoped to trick the ice dome into believing --that its master was near. Miraculously, it had worked; the dome had wavered enough for her to stick her hand inside and grab the sapphire before realizing she wasn't Albreda and proceeded to ice back over. Or, at least, had _tried_ to ice back over because, now that the gem wasn't stationary, the dome had been drawn back inside and disarmed. Naturally, once she was holding the darn thing, it'd gotten revenge by completely freezing the arctic gloves she'd been wearing (and she had had slight frostbite for two days afterwards) but that was a small consolation. She had the source of Sailor Mercury in her possession and that meant it was _out _of her dear ex-boss's.

And now that she proved her plan worked, she could get Valkyrie's emerald out the same way. Or, she could once she _found_ that perfect tricking object. Oh, she knew exactly what it was --she'd instantly thought of it like she had the computer-- but it seemed to be missing. A necklace; a golden symbol of Jupiter etched into an emerald stone pendant. It had the physical properties desired _and_ she'd noticed that Makoto had worn it almost religiously. She'd begun looking through the girl's apartment with the belief she'd easily find it in a jewelry box, only to end up tearing up the bedroom in frustration with the new belief it'd been hidden because Makoto had feared someone would see it and might notice she looked a lot like Sailor Jupiter.

…Of course, then Nephrite had to come and ruin everything. She glared at nothing in particular as she thought about the past week. After returning Albreda's computer Monday, she'd begun randomly transporting to Beryl's lair in hopes that Kunzite would appear and reprimand her for going against her promise to never come back. That way, she'd be able to grab him and force him to get his own gemstone out. But it was now Saturday and he'd never showed up, not even once. Either he was being an oblivious fool or… or those damned generals had somehow found him first and told him about her --_their_ child.

She winced, her hands involuntarily clenching at her sides. She knew she should have spoken with Kunzite as soon as possible. Or better yet, flattened Nephrite when she'd had the chance and ran for it. Not taunted him --she _knew_ better than that! Yes, Nephrite had to ruin everything. "That damn, infuriating man!" She growled. Thanks to him, she was running the risk of Kunzite appearing any second --she had no doubts that he knew where she lived; it'd be a shock if he _didn't_-- and demanding explanations. Explanations she didn't want to give because of the memories conjured up with them.

Her eyes drifted back to the black cases thoughtfully before she calmly swept the two containing gems inside her subspace pocket for protection. There was only one thing she could do, then; she'd already wasted a week in looking for Kunzite, it was time to go to the source of many of her current problems. She scowled as she teleported herself out of her downtown Tokyo apartment. By Sol, she hated Nephrite.

* * *

"Well, fancy meeting you here Miss Mizuno."

Startled, Ami looked up from the English textbook she was pouring over to see an increasingly familiar man standing in front of her with a grin. She smiled in return, pleasantly surprised. "Hello yourself, Mr. Wynne. I must say, we seem to keep coming across each other at the most random of times."

'_I'm afraid it wasn't so random this time, ma chérie. It took me fifteen minutes to gather the courage to stop hiding behind a tree, after practically stalking you from your apartment._' Zoisite forced his smile to be genuine. "It seems fate has a plan involving us, doesn't it?" He frowned pensively. "Or is fate supposed to be a She? I cannot seem to remember that mythology well."

"It all depends on _which_ mythology you are inquiring knowledge from." She replied simply as she closed her book and sat it aside before standing, "Though, I believe fate is usually feminine."

He grinned. "Ah, as smart as she is beautiful." He could only laugh good-naturedly as she instantly ducked her head and began wiping off her pants, trying to hide the blush on her face. "Forgive me. I seem to have embarrassed you yet again."

She cleared her throat after a moment or two, looking up at him with raised eyebrows. "I am beginning to think you enjoy it, truthfully."

"Who? Me?" He grinned innocently as he gestured to the quiet area she had found a little ways off the main path in the park. "So what brings you out here on this cold fall day?" He eyed the book on the ground. "A little light reading, perhaps?"

"Homework assignment, actually." She corrected as she bent down to pick up the book and brush off the few fallen leaves sticking to it, "I am doing an essay on the uses of the English language in countries where it is not dominant and what impact it has on the world as a whole."

He whistled. "Interesting undertaking. Let me guess, advanced English class?" He smiled, shaking his head in amusement as she nodded. "Now do you think that's fair? You told me you'd learned English as you were growing up in a country where the only official language is its own."

"Perhaps. Yet I believe my time in Germany simply allows me to draw from personal experience to help solidify the points I will make." She justified, "And since it is for a final project, I think that personal experience will help me tremendously."

"Hmm." His eyes flashed as a thought occurred to him. It was time to see how close Albreda was to the surface. "You know what English has always reminded me of? Latin."

Her brow furrowed. "How so?"

He smiled. "Latin had been the lingua franca for a time, as well. Look at how many modern languages draw roots from it: French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, the list goes on. Even when the Roman Empire collapsed, Latin continued to be the language of the educated in Central and Western Europe. After all these years, it still lives on in law, science, and the Latin alphabet is the most widely used one in the world."

"And in the modern world, one must have some knowledge of English when dealing with international affairs." She replied almost absently, "It is an official language of over fifty countries and countless worldwide agencies. International business, technology, aviation… all of them require knowledge of the language. In order to get something done a grand scale, it is wise to know English." Her brow furrowed. "It was the same for Latin. At its peak, the Roman Empire spread across three continents; it was a huge center of commerce with millions having knowledge of the language."

Zoisite watched her eagerly, seeing a spark of recognition deep within her eyes. '_Come on, Albry. Make the connection. Think of a kingdom you once knew that was just like you described. The greatest speaker of the language and a center of commerce. Well, I suppose it was the center of _everything_, really. Lunaria, Albry, Lunaria! Latin is the precursor of Lunarian. …Come on!_' He held his breath hopefully as she smiled at him. _'Is it--? Please tell me you remember _something_! I hate tricking you like this._'

"You are correct. They are very similar. Perhaps I will add a comparison in my essay."

And just like that, his hopes were dashed with what felt like, appropriately enough, a bucket of cold water. He managed to stifle his disappointment and smile instead, though it felt too stiff. "That's a good idea."

She blushed slightly. "Well, it was mostly yours…" The blush deepened as he laughed.

"You really are too good for my ego." He mused, "I should make it a habit to spend more time with you."

She smiled bashfully in return but it quickly turned into a frown as something occurred to her. "Aren't you going to return to Europe soon, though? Once your business trip ends?"

He chuckled. "I'm afraid I have some bad news for you, then. My trip has been extended indefinitely. Some… complications have risen that need to be remedied before I can return home."

"That isn't bad news." She smiled nervously as his gaze swung to her in surprise. "Is--is there anything wrong? If there are complications…"

He shrugged briefly. "I suppose many things have gone wrong." He hesitated for a moment. "My colleague and I came here to collect something, truthfully. We had thought we would make a few explanations, collect it, and then return home. A quick trip. But now there are several obstacles that make us unable to do so."

Her brow furrowed. "May I ask what you are supposed to collect?"

He grinned. "You may ask but I cannot answer. Another confidential matter, I'm afraid."

"I see." She fiddled with the book still in her hand timidly, "So, um, what brings you out here?"

"Being cooped up too long in my hotel room. I came out here for a walk then happened to come across a beautiful woman who I wanted to ask to join me."

"Oh." She fought to keep the disappointment out of her voice but knew she failed when he began laughing. She felt a mortified blush burn against her skin and instantly ducked her head for what felt like the hundredth time since she had met him.

"_You_." She rose startled eyes to find him staring at her intently, and seriously. "I saw _you_, Ami, and came over to ask you to join me on my walk?" His charming smile faltered for a second. "Or would you care to finish your homework instead?"

"It is a lovely day, a walk would be wonderful." She gained a sheepish look after a second. "Though, to be fair, I am supposed to meet a friend for a study session in forty minutes. I don't want you to believe I'm running off on you yet again."

He chuckled. "Well, thank you for the proper warning then. I appreciate it." He watched her slid her book into her bag and gather the rest of her belongings thoughtfully. "Is there any particular reason you are meeting your friend to study on a Saturday? Final preparations? Or are you the resident tutor?"

She smiled as she pulled her side pack onto her shoulder and began to walk beside him. "Both, actually. Usually I'm the one to initiate study sessions, especially when it is something as crucial as finals, but this time she did." Her smile became fond. "I'm so proud of her. She really is taking the incentive to do better. This past week, she turned in every single one of her assignments. It's a far cry from the monthly three or four she managed to turn in before."

"_Wow_. That sure is some sudden incentive." He sent his companion a mischievous smile. "I wonder if it has something to do with a guy, then. To go from monthly assignments to daily ones…" He whistled, shaking his head in amazement. "Yeah. A guy is a good possibility."

She stopped in her stride, looking at Zander's back thoughtfully. "You think?"

"Sure." He answered as he paused and turned to look at her, "To me it seems as if she's either _A_, trying to impress a guy or _B_, trying to match his intellect to prove she is worthy enough of him. Maybe both, I suppose." He nodded to himself. "Very possible, I've seen it happen enough back at home."

Ami frowned; she'd thought it had been solely because Serena had more time to study now that Senshi duties weren't in the way but perhaps, in light of the scene she'd seen yesterday afternoon with Darien, it was something else too. Still, the feminist in her mind insisted that Serena didn't need a guy in the picture to finally do better on her schoolwork. "But, boys usually distract her from her schoolwork. Not encourage it."

He shrugged in reply. "Different boys, different situations. It's like…" He frowned, trying to think of a way to explain his thoughts. "It's like the superficial 'like' where you always want to vie for their attention to the serious 'like-like' of not just showing off but improving yourself as well. By the sound of it, your friend is going through the 'like-like'. At least, to me that's what it sounds like but I don't know her so…"

She blinked at him with wide eyes. "I'm …not sure how to reply to that."

He grinned. "What? You've never gone from 'liking' someone to serious 'like-liking' them?"

"Not… that I'm aware of." She shook her head slowly. "Boys are too much of a distraction to my work."

'_Albry…_' Zoisite stifled a longing sigh; his Albreda had thought the same thing until he managed to prove otherwise. He quickly hid a grin. '_Okay, she kept telling me I was a horrible distraction but at least I had fun making those distractions._' "Well, that seems to be a problem then, Miss Mizuno. You need to allow yourself to like someone--"'_Preferably me._' "--so you can see that they aren't that great of a distraction. But, if you still feel they are, to learn that sometimes distractions aren't so bad."

"You sound as if you talk from experience."

He nodded. "Of course. I like to think I was instrumental in teaching my wife to loosen up and have fun." He winced as he abruptly ran into Ami's back. He hadn't even realized they'd begun walking again, so how had he gotten in back of her? "I'm terribly sorry about that. Are you alright?"

"Just fine." The bluenette's eyes were wide with shock as she turned around and studied the apologetic man before her. He did not look very old but then again… "You're married?"

He blinked in surprise. '_That's why she stopped so suddenly? …Interesting._' "Well, no. Not technically." She continued to look at him stupefied, so he elaborated. "I _considered_ her my wife." His smile was both sad and mysterious. "She was my wife in everything but the name; I didn't need the law to make it official in my mind. I knew she wanted to have a ceremony though, so we were going to, but things didn't work out between us. She …died, even before we had begun planning anything."

She gasped, covering her mouth with one hand. "I'm so sorry! I shouldn't have asked such a personal question!"

He shook his head as he began walking again. "No need to apologize because no harm has been done. Besides, I'm the one that offered the information."

She hurried to catch up with his longer stride. "Still, I shouldn't have asked such a thing. It was none of my business to question your personal life."

He grinned over his shoulder. "Trust me, it's okay." His grin widened as an idea crossed his mind. "How about to prove it, I tell you how the two of us met?"

"O…kay…" She whispered hesitantly as she strode beside him.

"Hmm. I had been on a business trip, quite similar to how I am now but wholly different at the same time." He shook his head. "So, anyway, we had been introduced at the start of it and exchanged polite comments, you know things like 'how do you do?' and so forth, but we really didn't have a conversation until the day I was leaving." He chuckled. "She told me she would push me into the icy river if I walked any closer to her."

"Oh my." Against her will, Ami giggled. "She must have been very spirited."

He smirked, glancing at her out of the corner of his eyes. "Yes, she was. Not many people saw that side of her, however, and I have a feeling that I never would have either if that particular meeting hadn't been so… _unexpected_." He chuckled again. "You see, I had frightened her while she was not fully clothed. It was by complete accident, of course, but she did not believe it."

She frowned. "Didn't you knock on the door or anything?"

He shook his head. "It was outside. I had heard someone and went to investigate, thinking it was perhaps a --please forgive the cliché-- damsel in distress. It turned out to be her splashing around in the water. I caught her as she was climbing out in no more than her undergarments. And barely there undergarments, to be clear." He added suddenly, unsure of how to explain the inappropriateness of him seeing her underclothes in the Silver Millennium when this new age had rather …_risqué_ swimming garbs.

"What in the world was she doing swimming like such when someone could have seen her so easily?" Ami questioned, aghast at the idea.

He smiled in fondness of the memory. "The …place… where the business was being conducted was--" He faltered before deciding to stay as close to the truth as he could, "was close to a woodland. The area of the river I came upon was actually her secret cove, so to speak. She loved the water and, after our --myself and my associates, that is-- meetings were done and we were preparing to leave, she decided to relax there. She never thought she would be disturbed and thus determined it was perfectly safe to practically skinny dip."

"What did you do?" She asked almost eagerly, falling into the story.

He coughed, rubbing the back of his head as a light blush dusted his nose. "Honestly I was frozen in shock, just staring at her for the longest time, until her shrieks and cries of indignation finally pierced my thoughts. Once she exclaimed that she'd throw me into the water, I told her that it could not be as cold as she claimed if she could have swam in there so unclothed. Then I --_uncharacteristically_,I might add," He said defensively, "--went on to say that if it was so cold, I would not mind it after seeing such a wondrous sight."

She gasped, shaking her head in amusement even as a blush formed at the innuendo. "You didn't!"

He smiled ruefully. "I did. She was so enraged and horrified that she forcibly grabbed me and _did_ throw me into the river." He laughed. "Then she was so shocked with herself that she immediately ran over, still only in her undergarments, and helped pull my stupefied self out."

She rose an inquisitive eyebrow amidst her giggles. "Was she that strong?"

He shook his head in wonder. "No. She was strong in her own right, of course, but physical strength wasn't her forte. Later I learned that one of her close friends was a war-- _err_, martial artist who had been teaching her some maneuvers and she had used one on me."

"Well, it does serve you right." She pointed out with an amused smile, "To say such a thing to a complete stranger. I should be glad you did not make a similar remark to me."

He grinned at her familiar teasing. "I told you it was an uncharacteristic comment. To this day I still blame one of my friends for its presence in that conversation. He is an appalling influence."

"Then why is he your friend?"

He shrugged lightly. "Like everyone else in the world, he has character flaws; I can't blame him for being himself. Just because he is a little perverse doesn't mean he's not a good, loyal, and caring friend. Besides that, he has calmed down some since he met his fiancée. In anything, he directs his comments toward her."

She shook her head. "I would not like to meet your friends if you keep such deviants in your company."

"It's just that one. The others are much calmer." He grinned suddenly. "Let me amend that last part. They're calm _most _of the time. Otherwise they're just a bunch of …well, loonies, to put it mildly."

She giggled. "That sounds like my own group of friends. At least before…" Zoisite watched in concern as she sighed, her smile quickly fading into a frown. "You spoke of fate earlier. Do you really believe there is such a thing?"

He eyed her and her sudden change of conversation in bewilderment but still responded. "I don't think my answer is the one you are looking for. The question, rather, is do _you_ believe everything happens for a reason? That fate and destiny exist?"

"I am one of reason and logic." She murmured, "A few months ago I would have readily told you that you made your own destiny."

"And now?"

They'd stopped sometime during his narrative and she took the time to look away, staring at the people walking about them without truly seeing anything. "Now I do not know. Events happen that seem to be inevitable and others you wish were not."

He was silent as he tried to find a suitable answer. "The question you're truly asking is 'why am I here right this minute? Was it fate or a series of actions made by myself and others that brought me here?'" He nodded to himself. "I have wondered similar things for as long as I can remember. Are actions in my life made for the sake of making actions or are they fated to be made as they are?"

"Exactly."

"So I ask you again, does fate exist for you?"

She looked up at his serious gaze thoughtfully. "I think… that life is a combination of fate _and_ actions. Destiny has a path carved for us but it is up to ourselves and our actions to bring us to our final destination." She bit her lip, watching as he nodded. "What do you think?"

"I think," He began slowly, "that I have to say that that flower matches your outfit rather nicely."

Her brow furrowed as she blinked in utter confusion. "…What do you--?" She stopped as she registered the feeling of silky petals under her fingertips. Her mouth dropped open as she looked down to see a white rose in her hand. "How--?" She looked back at her companion in disbelief.

He grinned. "I've been told I'm rather cunning a few times." He shrugged innocently. "I guess they were right. I put that in your hand a few minutes ago and have just been waiting for you to notice." He shook his head as she continued to gape. "Seriously, however, I also have to say that I agree with your conclusion; but, I honestly like to believe in fate sometimes. At least when it comes to the really good things." '_Like me finding my way back to you._' He stifled another sigh.

Ami fought not to shake her head; it would only make it fly off with the way it was spinning, she was sure of it. Either Zander had a very short attention span or he enjoyed catching her off guard; she had a sneaky suspicion it was the latter. She stared at the rose pensively, it was lying in the tunnel her lightly-curled fingers created and looking none worse for wear. He hadn't had to exert any force in making the silent delivery, otherwise a few of the petals would likely be pressed against or the stem bent just so. It had to take practice or--or _skill_ to do such a thing. They'd been walking along a row of roses bushes, yes, but she couldn't remember him picking one, let alone placing it in her hand. '_Ooh, he's a sly one alright._'

Zoisite watched in growing concern as his companion narrowed her eyes at the rose. Whatever was causing her to study it like that was probably not a good sign for him. '_Great going, Zoi! You don't need Albreda, of all people, being the least bit suspicious of you!_' Frantically, he thought of anything to get the flower off her mind, when realization finally dawned on him. '_Valkyrie. She said "That sounds like my own group of friends. At least before…" before Valkyrie __**died**__._' "Someone very close to you has died recently."

Just as he expected, she gasped and her head snapped up in surprise. "How do you know that?"

"The look in your eyes." He answered somberly, searching for and easily finding the sadness lurking deep in her blue gaze. It wasn't something you could hide very well. "One of my friends," He offered, "his wife passed on not long ago, and he has the same look. Which is why I know you asked me about fate. He's never said anything but I know he's wondering that exact same question. Was it really fate that striped away his wife so early? Before she had a chance to really experience life?"

She bit her lip. "Do you think he believes it was fate?"

"I can't say, but what I _can_ say is that he has the ability to read stars." He rapidly backtracked as she stared at him in surprise. "Or, at least, he _claims_ he does. He's a little melodramatic, so you know…" He cleared his throat. "Whether he actually can or not isn't important. What _is _important is that I always thought that such a claim implies he's more prone to believe in fate. Yet--yet he hasn't read the stars since his wife has been gone and I know it's because he's afraid of what he'll see. He and his wife had a daughter and I know he doesn't want to accept that fate is the reason she's now forced to grow up without her mother. He wants to believe it was something that could have been avoidable because fate would never be that cruel."

"I would too." She murmured, looking down and twirling the rose thoughtfully. It really was beautiful; a contrast to the soft gray trousers and the dark blue turtleneck sweater she was wearing. But it was so unexpected she didn't know what to think.

"…One of the most things--" Zoisite paused, shaking his head, "--no. _The_ worst thing that has ever happened to me was my wife dying and what makes it all worse is that I know it could have been completely unavoidable."

Absently she felt her hands tighten as she studied him and his sad expression. He'd given her a rose, yet here he was saying that his wife's death was the _worst_ thing that had ever happened to him… '_The worst thing; how long ago did it happen? Weeks, months, years?_'

A tick was forming in his jaw. "They didn't have to go… or they could have let us go with them. I _know_ it could have been avoidable--"

A white rose meant purity. Purity… as in a new start? A white rose also meant remembrance. Remembrance of the woman he'd considered his wife. His wife who wasn't officially his; who had _died_ before becoming his. '_…Why does my chest hurt?_'

He was sighing, rubbing his forehead. "--but, because I think that, I have to believe that fate had a hand in her death. She didn't have to leave but she still did. That tells me it was fate, no matter how much I hate it. I have to wonder if my friend thinks the same thing about his own wife's death. That, no matter how much you hate it, it was fate if it could have been avoidable from the beginning."

She gasped almost inaudibly, bringing her free hand up to clutch her heart.

"_**I hate this."**_

"_**I am sorry." She whispered, her eyes downcast from what she knew to be the man's angry scowl, "I did not want us to part in this manner."**_

_**After a few silent moments, he released a sort of deflated sigh and gentle hands came to rest on her shoulders. "No, it is I that should be sorry. This is not your fault, none of it. You are simply protecting and serving your Princess, as is your duty. I know this; I just do no like it."**_

"_**Even so, I am still sorry." She bit her lip, still not looking at him. "What this means… what Serenity shall be doing…"**_

"Ami! Mon Dieu! (a/n: "My God!" in French), you are bleeding!" She blinked, watching in a kind of detached daze as Zander pried open her fist. The rose's thorns had been clenched into her flesh, creating dots of blood that began to stain the rose petals. Still, all she could focus on was the scene that'd played out in her mind. '_What was that? Why am I finally remembering Princess Serenity… when I'm listening to Zander? And who was I talking to? __**Was **__it Zander --in his previous life? …And what did Serenity do?_' A white handkerchief appeared out of nowhere to blot away the blood, the rose nowhere to be seen.

"Ami, Ami!" She blinked, lifting her eyes to see Zander staring at her incredulously. "Ma chérie?"

"My favorite flowers are nymphaeaceae." She whispered, unsure of why she was saying it, but feeling she had to. With another blink, the pale ice blue of her eyes darkened into its familiar navy blue.

The brown-haired man stared at her, flabbergasted. "Okay." He forced out a weak chuckle. "I will be sure to remember that next time to avoid this kind of incident." He looked down at her hand, wiping it a few more times, before looking up at her. "Are you okay? You looked kind of… _lost_ there for a few minutes."

"I'm fine." She murmured, before smiling slightly at he rose a disbelievingly eyebrow. "Perhaps I am coming down with something. I have been undertaking a lot of responsibilities lately. Late night, early mornings, and cold days are not a healthy combination."

He nodded slowly before making a big show of looking at his watch, giving her an escape. "Hopefully your friend will allow you to rest before you begin your study session then. And have something to bandage your hand too, of course." He frowned lightly. "I'm sorry I don't have something on me--" Realization dawned in his eyes and he reached down to the bottom of his shirt.

"No." She placed a gentle hand, the uninjured one, on his wrist to stop him. "It isn't necessary to ruin your garment for a bandage. My friend will have some." She smiled slightly and withdrew her hand to adjust the strap on her shoulder. "Thank you for telling me about your …wife." Her injured hand flexed slightly. "And for stopping the bleeding. I--I have to go," She whispered, taking a few steps back, "before I am late."

He smiled but it didn't reach his eyes. "Of course, of course. I hope to run into you again." She smiled, it not reaching her eyes either, and walked away without another word. '_Don't tell me I made a mistake, Albreda._' He thought pleadingly as he looked down at his bloody handkerchief before bringing out the rose he'd gingerly stashed in his pocket, '_Don't tell me my foolish desperation made you remember something you shouldn't have yet. Please, Albry._'

* * *

She hadn't known what to expect when she transported herself into Nephrite's apartment. Finding him bending over in a pair of boxers and a white undershirt was not on the list, however. She rose an eyebrow. "I'm afraid the view is not to my liking. Is it a habit of yours to wear only underclothes so late in the day?"

His back snapped up and he spun around with a hiss of surprise only to scowl as he saw his unwelcome visitor. "Áine! You scared the crap out of me! Don't you know how to use the front door?" He paused, seeming to finally absorb her words. "It's only nine a.m., I can be in my pajamas if I want." He eyed her cream shirt and orange circle skirt in a state of distaste. "Isn't it a little early for designer clothes, anyways?" He winced, a twinge developing in his back, as he looked down at her white stiletto heels.

She caught sight of his gaze and had to smirk. "What? Afraid my big bad shoes will hurt you again?" Her amusement faded as her eyes drifted down to what he was holding in one of his hands. A teddy bear. Her gaze fell to the floor, taking in the assortment of toys scattered about. Crayons. Books. Blocks. "…It really is true. You two had a child." She whispered.

The mahogany-haired man frowned, unsure of what to say. "Áine…"

She shook her head to get rid of her unwanted thoughts. Children were born every day; what did it matter that Valkyrie and Nephrite had one? "I have come to warn you." She told him, though her eyes still stayed trained on the dangling bear unwillingly, "If you wish to keep the last memories of Valkyrie in tact, you will clear out her apartment as soon as possible."

"Why?"

She met his eyes steadily. "You know my secret and because of that, it will only be a matter of time before Kunzite knows it as well." Her eyes flashed. "Now there is truly nothing significant holding back my retribution for the wrongs committed against me. The time of change is upon us all."

His brow furrowed despite the slight smirk tugging at his mouth. "Rather poetic, aren't you?"

She glowered. "I had thought you would appreciate this warning. For your daughter's sake, if not for your own as well, but now I see that it was a wasted effort because you are only going to be your usual idiotic self." She began to fade out of the room but a sudden ironclad grip caught her wrist and her transportation was forced to stop as she lost her concentration. "Release me." She hissed, glaring as her body reverted back to solidity.

"Sorry, I only obey orders from a select few." He retorted simply, a suspicious frown on his face. "What are you planning? Why do I have to pack up Val's apartment?"

Her glare didn't waver. "Do you _want_ her to destroy the last memories of your wife, then? I already told you, as you so readily mocked, the time of change is upon us all."

"You're rebelling." He whispered in realization, his grip slacking enough for her to yank her wrist back out. He barely noticed, instead searching her eyes frantically. "Is she here? In the city?"

"Have the great Terran generals proved their ignorance once again?" A smirked played on her lips. "Would I be here, if she wasn't? Isn't _everyone_ important here, as a matter of fact?"

"No." He whispered, his eyes dropping down to the teddy bear. "Not everyone is here."

She watched him stoically, knowing how easy it would be to tell him the truth. Tell him his wife was still alive, only missing, then give him the emerald that had been so hard to breakout and that would be it. Everything would be out of her hands and she'd be able to focus on more pressing matters. But she _couldn't_. It wasn't even in some sort of revenge for him finding out the secret she had thought she'd hidden so well --though, honestly, the thought _had_ crossed her mind; how could it not? But, no. She couldn't because Valkyrie seemed important to _her_, too. If she was right, her dear ex-boss had had a purpose for the Jovian and she knew if she breathed a word of the woman's survival to Nephrite, his big mouth and eagerness would blow any chances of finding out that purpose. "Perhaps Valkyrie was not meant to participate in this battle." She finally offered.

He snorted. "I'll believe that when you do." She only stared at him, so he sighed and ran a hand through his short hair. "All right, so I'm assuming she doesn't know about your retribution?" Her smirk was enough of an answer; _no_. "How much time do I have until you do whatever it is and make her mad enough to destroy evidence of Val's life?"

She shrugged slightly. "It is simply a warning. There is no telling what she will do in the coming days. I simply thought you might like your …daughter… to have belongings from her mother." She flinched slightly at her halting speech.

His eyes narrowed almost immediately. "Would… you like to see her? She's still asleep, but…"

She didn't think as she gasped almost imperceptibly and nodded, taking a few steps forward. It was only the cracking sound that echoed in the silent apartment that shattered her stupor. She scolded herself harshly for her lack of restraint even as she looked down to see she'd stepped on a coffee mug that'd been tipped over on its side beside the recliner.

Nephrite watched her curiously as she bent down to pick up the ruined mug before his eyes light up as she winced, a trail of blood appearing on one of the shards. Now that was interesting; neither he or anyone else had discussed obtaining Áine's blood. Be it either because it was seemingly impossible or that there was no point in it, but… this had to have happened for a reason, right? She was practically _giving_ him her blood!

Maybe it would be pointless and a waste of time to test her blood for any traces of poison, but at the same what if it _wasn't_? The saying "better safe than sorry" existed for a _reason_, right?

"I'm sorry." She whispered, the bloody debris in her hands, "It was a mistake." Without asking, she wandered over to the kitchenette and found a wastebasket to throw the broken object in by the wall. His eyes followed its decent inside the black container almost eagerly.

"It's fine, Áine." He finally commented, a wry smile on his face, "It was just from my in-laws, anyways. Definitely no loss. Now if it had been the 'Greatest Dad on Earth' mug that Rose made for me for Father's Day, it would be a completely different story…"

She froze, her breath catching in her throat so swiftly it caused her eyes to water --so she told herself. She took a deep breath, shaking her head. "I… have accomplished all that I came here for. It is time to leave." She took a few unnecessary steps toward the balcony, her body beginning to vanish once more.

"Wait!" She wasn't sure what made her stop but she still did, raising an eyebrow inquiringly while Nephrite struggled to find the words he was looking for. "I have no problem with you seeing my daughter and I doubt --I don't _think_-- that Valkyrie would either." She stayed impassive, making it obvious that the "mistake" she spoke of was agreeing to see Rose. He eyed her for a moment before replying, "Okay, then. Thank you for the warning. I'll start clearing out the apartment the first chance I get." She nodded but his next ones caused her to halt in surprise. "Áine. When it comes down to it, will the rest of us be able to trust you? Will you be on our side?" She met his eyes steely before looking away as she finally managed to fade out of sight.

She hadn't answered his question, but her eyes had said she wasn't sure.

* * *

"Here, Jed."

The Far-Eastern general quickly shot out a hand to capture the object hurled toward him as Zoisite walked out of his suite into his. He eyed the white handkerchief inside the plastic sandwich container; it had a few good splashes of blood on it. "Albeda's, I'm assuming?"

"Yeah." The brown-haired man replied listlessly as he pilfered an orange out of a basket on the telephone table. He frowned in thought as he leaned against the back of the couch where his friend was sitting.

"Well, it took you a week but better late than never I suppose." Jadeite laughed lightly as he looked up from the container. "So how'd you get it?"

"By accident. I was telling her about the woman I had once considered my wife." Zoisite's brow creased as he began pulling the orange peel off. "I'd given her a rose around that time, as well, and she accidentally clenched its thorns into her hand. Worried or not, I didn't look a gift-horse in the mouth and wiped up the blood. The rose is in there, too."

The redhead chuckled as he placed the container on the coffee table and reached over to grab an apple for himself. "Sounds like she was jealous. Which I guess makes it safe to say she already has a thing for you." He bit into his apple, smirking. "And, considering you've only run across her a few times, I think you have a pretty good shot at starting a relationship with her again. So congrats, Zoi."

"…She turned into Albreda." The European general admitted after a few silent minutes, "With ice blue eyes. Like Darien turns into Endymion with gold eyes."

The green apple fell out of Jadeite's grip. "You sure?" He asked, his eyes almost popping out of his head.

"Positive."

"What'd she say?" The redhead asked impatiently, leaning down to pick up his fruit. He eyed it for a second before rubbing it on his shirt and taking a large bite. "Well?"

"That her favorite flowers are nymphaeaceae." Zoisite received a blank look in reply, so he rolled his eyes. "Water lilies, Jed; her favorite flowers are water lilies."

"Okay…"

The brunette general shook his head. "But, what I don't understand is why would Albry tell me something I already know? Of all the things she could have said to me…"

"You gave her the rose beforehand, right?" Jadeite got a nod in reply. "She probably thought you forgot."

"No. It was something else. She was in a daze while I was wiping the blood off and then she was suddenly Albreda. I can't help--" Zoisite shook his head irritably. "I had reservations about how I was going to get blood out of her. The only way I could think of was by force, which wasn't a very good idea, so I was trying to see how close Albreda was to the surface of her mind. I figured if she was close enough, I could just explain the situation and ask for the blood, you know?"

"Following you so far." Jadeite commented, his brow furrowed.

"After not being able to find her this whole week, I just gave up and cased her apartment building--"

"You _stalked _her?" The other man interrupted with a disbelieving laugh.

Zoisite glared darkly. "--and when I finally spoke to her, she was doing an English assignment in the park. Almost right away, I began drawing parallels between English and Latin in an effort to get her to remember the Lunarian language. Of course it didn't happen but I was still desperate for her to come out, so later I ended up telling her about how the two of us met on the moon. …I can't help but think I went too far and she remembered something she probably shouldn't have yet --and it made her turn into Albreda. And when it happened, it startled me so much I didn't even think to explain the situation to her."

Jadeite frowned in concern. "What were you talking about before she went dazed?"

"Fate, destiny." Zoisite waved a hand. "Specifically, I was ranting about how it must have been fate that she had died in the Silver Millennium because I can't help but think it was unavoidable."

"No kidding." Jadeite muttered under his breath before scratching the back of his head. "Well, I don't know what she could have remembered that turned her into Albreda. I mean, it's not like we've ever seen it happen before Endymion started doing it. It could have been anything from a random conversation to her final moments. Hell, it could have been just plain jealousy because she thought you were talking about your wife --someone not _her_."

"Maybe." The Frenchman shifted restlessly for a few seconds before tossing the half unpeeled orange toward his friend. "I'm gonna go think this over. Take a walk or something." He rolled his eyes again as Jadeite's scowled, his mouth opening. "Don't worry. I'll be back before Nephrite gets here later. If not, I have my phone on me." He walked out and slammed the door behind him without so much as a "Bye".

* * *

'_Could it have been Zander that I was speaking with in that memory? The accent sounded vaguely French, I suppose, but what are the odds that he would be born in the same ethnicity? And why would I finally remember something about the Silver Millennium when I was with him? Why not with any of the others that I know _were _present with me? Why __**him**__?_'

"Okay, that it!" Ami jumped in surprise, her eyes flying over to see Serena had slammed her book shut and was staring at her intently. "You've been here for an hour and haven't said a word about how I've been doodling this whole time. Something is going on with you!"

The bluenette blushed in embarrassment at her inattentiveness. "N-no. Nothing. Simply… thinking."

"Uh-huh." The blonde piped up disbelievingly, "I invited you over here to _study_; you should be boring me to tears already. But, no, instead you came in in some kind of stupor, asking for a medical supply kit, and then have been spacing out the whole time! It's so-- so _un-Ami_ like. I swear, if I didn't know any better, I would think you were thinking about a boy." She gasped as her friend abruptly choked, her blush deepening. "No way! Little Ami is thinking about a _boy_!"

Said girl put up her hands quickly, waving them defensively. "No, no! It--it's nothing like that!" She cleared her throat as calmly as she could as Serena stared at her with wide eyes. "R-rather I think something is going on with _you_." Her eyes slid to the notebook sitting beside the blonde's closed book meaningfully. "_Especially_ given how many of those doodles happen to look like a college freshman we know." She felt like smiling uncharacteristically deviously as her friend blushed, grabbing the notebook and hugging it to her chest for dear life. "_Hmm?_ Would you care to share what I saw yesterday afternoon at school, Serena?"

"W--well… I--um." The blonde laughed nervously, rubbing the back of her head as she pressed the notebook, doodle side down, back on the ground with the other hand. "Yeah. Okay." She sighed. "You got me." Ami nodded firmly and propped open her history book on her lap but was distracted when Serena spoke up a few minutes later. "…If I tell you, will you tell me?" Serena watched her friend look up, her brow knitted together, so she took action. She sat up from her belly-down position on the floor and put on her best puppy-dog face. "Please, please, _please _Ames? With a nice cherry on top?" The bluenette rose a calm eyebrow, so she faltered. "Or, a, um… cherry colored solar calculator?"

She tried to stop it, but Ami still felt her giggles break out. They hadn't even had to engage in a staring contest this time. "Wow. Even when it's just you, I'm still worn down. I suppose I miss this normality more than I had thought." She closed her book, offering her friend a hesitant smile. "So, you first?"

The blonde's brow had long furrowed. "What do you mean by normality? We're just hanging out."

"Exactly." Ami smiled sadly. "Both of us decided that this would be a completely Senshi-_free _study session. None of us have done that recently. Not with how Rei hasn't been acting like herself and Minako never being around. Luna has never cared for conversation that isn't about the Senshi or the Dark Kingdom and I highly doubt the princess would either…"

"Well, all I have to say is too bad for them! I'm all for the juicy details!" Serena declared, smiling as her friend giggled again. "And since I'm first… well, something is kinda going on between me and Darien."

"Something as in…?"

She shrugged but a blush still formed on her cheeks. "Nothing official, we decided to take it slow. But, uh, I suppose it started during my stay at the hospital. He was just… always _there_, you know? I never asked him to be or anything, but he was." She smiled. "And it's kind of hard not to get to know someone better when you're always with them. We… just got close, I guess, and things progressed from there."

"Does that mean you worked out your differences and put aside your childish bickering?"

"Nope." She giggled as Ami's hopeful face fell. "Sorry to disappoint you but it looks like we'll _always_ tease each other. But, it's not all… _serious _anymore. I mean, I know most of it wasn't, but there were still those times we got out of hand." Her smile widened. "I don't think that'll happen anymore."

The bluenette smiled as she heard the tone in Serena's voice; she was _honestly_ happy with the changes, which made her happy too. "Then I'm glad. I never liked seeing you hurt. Though, to be quite honest, I'm not sure you two should continue to hurl objects at one another if you decide to pursue an active relationship." She grimaced. "It would not be beneficial to anyone in the event of a serious disagreement."

"How about I'll try?"

Ami smiled wryly. "That's all I ask for. So," She leaned forward with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes. "what was with the display at school yesterday?"

"Darien kidnapped me." The blonde grumbled, crossing her arms, "After a week of not seeing him, he showed up out of nowhere and kidnapped me! The nerve!" She grinned suddenly. "But I can't be mad at him. After everything was said and done, he was so sweet. And all the things he told me… I can't believe he would trust me that much. I mean, I knew he already did, but _that_ is like on a whole other level with him…"

Ami rose a curious eyebrow at her friend's dreamy expression. "Um. What happened, exactly?"

"Oh!" Serena laughed in embarrassment; she'd completely started rambling to herself. "He took me out to the ocean to talk about …something…" She said vaguely; hey, she had to protect _him_ somehow, right? It was only right considering how much he was trying to protect her. As far as she was concerned, no one was going to hear a peep about his parents or him being Tuxedo Mask out of her anytime soon. Not even Ami. "He bought me dinner and made me feel better about a lot of things and there was just lots of _talking_. We'd never done that before…" Her lips curved up into a smile again. "It wasn't all great, you know how many times there was an awkward silence between us at the beginning? But in the end completely worth it…"

The bluenette's brow furrowed. "In what way?"

Serena sighed happily. "We kissed. My _first_ kiss. It was the best cliché I've ever been in my whole entire life. The ocean, the night sky, the way he looked at me; I swore I even heard a chorus singing in my head at one point…" Her eyes flew open and she was shook out of her blissful daze as Ami did something she never thought she would do.

She squealed. Loudly and girlishly.

* * *

"Why did you not tell me about Makoto's true existence? Her _real_ life?"

The silver-haired woman rose an elegant eyebrow at the sudden demand as orange lights filled the room and a golden-haired woman appeared. "Why would I have done that, Venus?"

Áine gnashed her teeth together as she glared at the woman sitting in the middle of Rei's bedroom floor. She was sitting on another one of those genuine silk pillows the priestess had dug up who knows where (this one a silver, instead of the red she'd first seen her on) and was still perfectly imitating Serenity, right down to the polite smile etched into her lips. "What did you do to--"

"--renity… _please_… don't leave me here…. _Serenity_." Áine's froze before her eyes snapped up to Rei's bed to see it was being occupied by _Luna_. She looked to be in the throes of a nightmare, shivering with hair matted to her forehead with sweat. "No… _No!_"

Her eyes slid back to the silver haired woman suspiciously. "What is she remembering?"

Faux-Serenity calmly sipped her tea, the China cup making no sound as it was placed back on its matching white and pink plate she was gently holding in one hand. "Luna cannot remember."

"What? …She can't remember? What's _that_ supposed to mean?"

Silver eyes flashed. "It is exactly as I say. She cannot remember."

Áine pursed her lips together in frustration, knowing that was all she would get in explanation. She supposed it didn't really matter (it wasn't as if she cared for the Mauian's welfare) but there was still something --something _big_-- she was missing. And she hated to be caught unawares. "Whatever." She snapped, "What did you do to Valkyrie?"

"Why, nothing. I am not the one that killed her. She chose to do that herself." A slight smirk light up the woman's fake silver eyes. "That is quite the …noble deed, is it not?"

"You know what I'm talking about." Áine hissed, her hands clinching at her sides, "Why did she believe she was a teenager?"

"You have spoken with the Terran." Another calm sip of her tea. "Or was it perhaps Artemis again?" The fraud abruptly waved a careless hand. "No. It matters not. He chose to become one of those repulsive, primitive Terrans ultimately."

Áine smirked suddenly. "I do not seem to recall it being a _complete_ choice." She stuck her hand on a jutted out hip, glaring at the woman through cool eyes. "Once you realized how dangerous he could have become to your planning, he was sent to Sol and from there he chose to go to Terra." Her eyes narrowed. "Quite a nice _blood gift_, wasn't he?"

The woman met her eyes impassively. "Their youngest Prince had just died. I would have been looked down upon unfavorably had I not paid my respects."

A snarled lifted up Áine's lips. "Like it would have mattered. Everyone on that planet knew the truth, or at least suspected it. _Everyone_ in that royal family should have _despised_ you; you killed their youngest First Prince in cold-blooded murder."

Faux-Serenity's eyes light up in cold amusement. "I did not think Solarians were cold-blooded." She took another elegant sip of her tea. "Hmm. Thank you for correcting my misinformation, Venus. I will trust your word for that same …hot-tempered blood runs through your veins, does it not?"

"Your insults are running wild." Came the smug reply, "Was that an attended jab at myself, my brother, or Serenity? We are all half-Solarian and everyone knows that a Solarian can perhaps be more prone to a temper than most. Except for a Martian, of course."

"Do not forget the Jovian." The smirk returned, the corners barely curving up the woman's stolen face. "Valkyrie had quite a spirit; it is …sad her daughter will not see it, is it not?"

The amusement slid off Áine's face as her eyes light up in horrified realization. "The daughter. How did I not _see_ this?" She shook her head, marveling at her own idiocy. "…You kidnapped Valkyrie and made her forget her life somehow, then you created a false one. As soon as she was seamlessly adjusted into it, you would have stole her daughter and used her against her. No, have _Beryl_ and her generals use her." Her hands clenched at her sides as the woman rose a calm eyebrow. "A few suggestive comments during the battles to get Valkyrie thinking, then it would have been the finale. A sight of the child, who'd no doubt recognize her mother and call out accordingly. More power to you if Valkyrie instinctively recognized the child as _hers_, even if she couldn't remember the how's or why's or _when's_. She would have known though, and brought up the questions during a meeting --maybe a Silver Millennium child, who _knows_, right?-- then you would have come in." Her glare deepened murderously. "Little, _innocent_ Princess Serenity would have said none of her guardians had had a child. The girl must have been mistaken or, _maybe_, she was a present-day child. Then you'd go on to innocently ask how someone could ever forget their child; the parent must not have _loved_ them enough, you suppose. When the truth finally did come out about everything, you would have played those twisted mind games of yours. Taunting her, saying she _allowed_ herself to forget; she hadn't wanted to fight and hold on to the life she'd created. You were going to make Valkyrie become another pawn of yours. Just like you did _me_. My child--" She quickly took a deep breath as her throat began to close up with the onslaught of upcoming tears. "my child was _useless_ to you alive; only with death did you find it beneficial. Valkyrie's daughter is the _exact_ same thing to you."

"Valkyrie committed a warrior suicide." The woman answered calmly after a few silent moments, "It does not matter what my plans concerning her were. She is dead."

Áine bowed her head, hiding her tearing eyes behind her bangs, but after a second laughed harshly. "Do you really expect that to make me believe you still won't harm her child? One parent is dead, so what. Nephrite is still alive and I know you aren't above using _anyone_ to get what you want. And that is Serenity's and her husband's death. The child's death would be a direct blow to Nephrite, who would likely go on a suicidal rampage to get his revenge. The fool's death would ultimately hurt Endymion, which would hurt Serenity. Both of their guards would be severely lowered, enabling you to swoop in and kill them."

"Are you not getting a ahead of yourself, Venus?" Faux-Serenity tilted her head slightly, making a lock of silver hair fall off her shoulder. "My qualm is not with a submissive Terran general or his daughter."

"If you harm that child," She began coldly, her eyes glaring at the refined woman, "I _will_ kill you."

The woman didn't even bat an eyelash. "A threat, Venus? Such a blatant one, too." She uncharacteristically let her smile of amusement show. "Duly noted; however, I am forced to ask if you truly believe you would be in a position to follow through with said threat if I did indeed harm the half-breed."

"She. Is. A. Child." Áine hissed, "Not a half-breed. Not a tool. A _child_. I failed at protecting my own but that doesn't mean I will fail at protecting anyone else's from you." Her eyes narrowed suddenly. "You should know that by now, though, shouldn't you? I _am_ protecting a child; the youngest First Solarian Prince's child. And I _will_ continue to protect Serenity until someone _finally_ kills you."

"Hmm." The imposter picked up her tea cup thoughtfully. "I am afraid that did not work out quite well the first time, Venus. That pathetic Terran Prince may have killed me, yet I am very much sitting right here in _dear_ Lady Rei's home. Alive. Ah, that reminds me." Her eyes flashed up to Áine. "If you thwart anymore of Luna's attacks, I will see to it that I quite _suddenly_ remember some crucial information about the invasion on Lunaria. Will the others not be horrified to learn that you _assisted_ Serena in leading the youmas onto the palace courtyard?"

The warrior's eyes darted up to Luna briefly, assessing her. She'd been mumbling incoherently the whole time she'd been speaking with her oh-_so_-wonderful ex-boss but her nightmare seemed to be waning now. And, as the woman's body began stilling, she could finally see the faint, healing bruises marking her skin; she'd been attacked --and recently. Áine looked back at the silver-haired woman, fighting back the curious narrowing of her eyes and instead curtseyed slightly. "Of course, _Your Majesty_. Your wish is mine to obey…" She backed away, a mocking bow in place until the last remains of her faded away and set the bedroom into an orange glow as she teleported herself back to her apartment. '_Now just who stopped Luna from an attack? And who was the attack on?_' Her eyes narrowed. '_Serenity. It was on Serenity and someone helped her get away unscathed. That's why she chose that particular threat; I may have led the youma forces but Serenity most certainly didn't…_' She grimaced. '_I need to get the other gems out. Fast. The only thing to do is to assume Valkyrie was wearing the necklace when disappeared, which means…_' She closed her eyes as she transported herself to Nephrite's apartment for the second time that day.

* * *

"Ouch, Ames. I think you blew out an eardrum." Serena teased as her eyes slid over to her friend. Ami was sitting across from her again, her hands fisted against her lap and blushing furiously. "Oh, well. At least I can breathe now. That hug sure cut off a lot of my oxygen…"

The blush deepened. "S-sorry. I just, I'm so happy for you. Darien is your first -_almost_- boyfriend and, when he isn't being rude, he is a rather polite and accomplished man. You could have done worse." She smiled wryly. "Honestly, I except you to be bouncing off the walls."

"I already did last night." The blonde admitted with an embarrassed laugh before pausing. "But that doesn't get out of this room, alright? Darien would tease me forever if he found about that…" She blushed, shaking her head. "Or how I fell into the house when my mom opened the door not long after he drove away."

"You fell into the house?" Ami asked, wide-eyed, before giggling at the mental image. "That'll definitely stay between us. Darien would tease you endlessly."

"_I know._" Serena groaned, before smiling. "But now that I've told you all that… it's time for me to learn about your mystery man! So spill, who is he!?" She leaned forward gleefully, an almost unholy smile on her face. "Is it someone I know!? Does he go to our school, or your cram school? _Ami, _say something!"

Against her will, the girl laughed even as her blush spread to her neck. "N-no. He, uh, doesn't go to school anymore. At least that I'm aware of…" She frowned considerately. "I suppose in all actuality, it is very possible he is attending college or a technical school."

"An older man!?"

"Y-yes." Ami squeaked, hanging her head. At this rate, she knew her blush wouldn't be fading anytime soon. "B-but… we're just acquaintances, nothing more!" She amended swiftly.

Serena grinned mischievously. "How many times have you seen him?"

"Three, including our encounter this morning."

"Wow, you didn't even hesitate. Sounds to me like _someone_ is eager for the next run-in~!" The blonde sang out joyfully, her grin widening.

Ami choked on air. "N-no. Of course not! He is much too old for me. Besides, we are not …compatible enough to begin a c-courtship of any sorts."

"'Courtship'?" Serena repeated humorously, "Don't you mean a 'relationship'?" Ami sputtered, making her giggle. "And why not? If it's a possibility that he might go to a technical school, then that sounds like you have at least one thing in common. An interest in technology. And that's a start right? What else do you know about him?"

The genius blushed but that still didn't stop her from answering. "W-well, there isn't much to tell. His name is Zander Wynne and he is French--"

"_Ooh_. A Frenchman! Oh-la-la!" Serena squealed. "French is the language of love~! A dashing foreign man to sweep you off your feet! Ah, just like something out of all your romance novels!"

"_Serena!_" Ami hissed in horror, her blush deepening as she looked to the girl's open bedroom door desperately. Fortunately no one was in sight. "You promised you'd never speak of them!"

"S-sorry." The girl cleared her throat, trying to keep a straight face. "I'm behave. Promise."

"Sure you will." Ami said dryly, though the blonde's antics still caused a smile to tug at her lips. "But, yes. He is a Frenchman. Yet he works elsewhere in Europe and is currently in Tokyo on business with a colleague of his." At her friend's curious look, she elaborated. "He builds and maintains electronics for a living, among other work. And this PDA he's built… oh, you should see it!"

Serena bit her lip to keep from giggling as her friend released a positively longing sigh. Ami had it _bad_; ah, she was so excited! "Sounds to me like he's got the makings of your dream man." She commented happily, "So, why'd you say you're not compatible enough to begin a 'courtship'?"

"He is much too old for me. There are at least four years between us and that is much too large of an age gap!" She insisted firmly before startling Serena as her head bowed, her voice barely above a whisper as she continued, "And he is in love with someone else. He did not say so but, I could see it in his eyes."

"Oh, Ames. I'm so sorry." Serena winced for her friend's sake. Just when the perfect man finally comes along for Ami, someone has to get in the way! "Are--are you sure there's someone else, though? If he didn't say so…"

"No, he didn't say he was in _love_ with the person but he _did_ speak of her. He told me how they had met; she sounded so wonderful and he sounded in love with her even more so."

"But--but the fact he didn't _say_ he was in love with her is a good sign though, right?" The blonde asked anxiously, "If he didn't say he was in love with her, that means you still have a chance!"

"I'm afraid I don't have any chance. The woman was his deceased wife." Ami smiled sadly as her friend gasped, almost falling forward in shock. "You, and Makoto for that matter, often said that neither of you would mind being married young as long as it was to the man of your dreams. Your soul-mate, true love, etcetera."

"A-and you think his wife was his?"

"Yes." The bluenette paused, chewing on her bottom lip. "She wasn't _officially_ his wife but he said that she was in almost every sense of the word. They were going to be married but she died before they had a chance to plan anything. …In the few times I have spoken with him, it's my opinion that he has a rather practical mind like myself. If there is four years between us, that would mean he would be approximately twenty. It is not uncommon but, because of his practical mind, it would seem young for him to marry and start that aspect of his life. I am unsure of _when _she died, but in any case, he was ready to commit himself to such a serious union, so I am sure he considered his 'wife' his soul mate." She bowed her head, that odd pain in her chest returning. "And, how can I have a chance against that?"

"But even in such a short time, you like him a lot, don't you?" Serena whispered sadly.

Ami looked up with a smile but her eyes were too sad for the happy emotion. "It may have been influenced by his PDA, honestly." She giggled, promptly Serena to too, but all the while the blonde had to wonder if her friend was already unknowingly in love with this stranger. And she wished with everything that she could do something to make her feel better.

At noon, not even a half hour later, they mutually agreed to postpone their study session for a later date.

* * *

'_**6 pm. Neph here. Get your ass back. Now.**_**' **Jadeite smirked as he snapped his cell phone closed, secure in the knowledge that his text message would get to Zoisite in no time. He blinked as a cloth bag suddenly dangled in his field of vision before it dropped into his lap.

"That'll be 5,700 yen, please."

He frowned as he placed his cell phone aside and opened the bag, peering inside. He quickly did some conversions in his head, his jaw dropping as he came up with the American dollar total. "You paid almost sixty bucks for _this_?" He asked Nephrite disbelievingly as the man walked over to the mini-fridge.

The mahogany-haired man shrugged. "Yeah. Figured if I bought the most expensive one the toy store had, it'd have everything you need. Or, at least, close to everything."

Jadeite crinkled his nose as he quickly began pulling things out of the plastic briefcase. "I think you might have been better off with the cheapest one. This one's missing all kinds of standard things. It doesn't even have copper chloride! Or a _magnifying glass_! What the--!?"

"Hello? Do I _look_ like I'm a chemist, or even _enjoy_ chemistry for that matter?" Nephrite snorted as he twisted open the top to the bottle water in his hand. "You should have just gotten it yourself then, if you're going to complain so much."

"Jed not complaining is like Kunzite smiling. Impossible." Startled, both men turned to see a smirking Zoisite walking through the open door connecting Jadeite's room with his.

Jadeite frowned as he looked up from the box. "Where'd you come from? I thought you went on a walk."

"I've been tinkering." The man replied simply but it was enough of an explanation for the others; it was a well-known fact he tinkered with his electronics when he was frustrated or confused. The faux brunette's eyes fell to the box in his friend's hands and his smirk widened. "Ah, I see you got the chemistry set, Neph."

"The _junior_ one!" Jadeite exclaimed in disbelief as he returned to the box and skimmed over it, "You couldn't have at least gotten the adult one!? I'm not a little kid!"

Zoisite looked over at his American friend, not bothering to try to hide his amusement. "You hit up the toy store. I see you had the same thought as I did."

Nephrite laughed. "Yeah. Junior set equals less accidents and ways for Jed to blow us all up. I thought it was pretty smart."

"Pretty _insulting_ you mean!" The redhead general correctly irritably, "I can't believe this!"

Nephrite rolled his eyes as he reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a plastic sandwich baggy, waving it around teasingly. "Then I'm sure this will cheer you right back up, Jed."

Both of the other generals found their eyes following the bag's movement curiously. "What is it?" Jadeite questioned as he placed his new chemistry set back down.

"A broken mug." The mahogany-haired man shrugged briefly as a slow smile spread across his face. "With some of Áine's blood on it."

"No way." Zoisite frowned as Nephrite nodded, his smile becoming downright smug. "How?"

"An interesting story." The American general mused as he placed the bag on the coffee table absently, "Áine came to my apartment earlier. Twice, actually. The first time she told me to clean out Val's apartment before it was destroyed."

"By who? Her?" Jadeite asked, confused.

"Think a little higher up in the food chain. As in who Áine's been getting _orders_ from." As understanding dawned in the other men's eyes, Nephrite nodded. "Yeah. And guess what? She's here in the city. Áine confirmed it herself."

"Shit." Jadeite muttered, "Not good at all."

"And the second time?" Zoisite questioned curiously, "What'd Áine say to you the second time?"

"_**I am in need of something." **_

_**Unable to help himself, he jumped in surprise and dropped the tumbler he'd been pouring apple juice into for Rose. She'd finally woken up and they were on their way down to pack up Val's apartment, but of course, nothing ever went smoothly for him. "You know, I'm getting real tired of that." His eyes narrowed in on Áine's impassive face. "Two visits in one day? To what do I own this honor, milady?"**_

"_**I am in need of something." She repeated, ignoring his mockery, "Something of importance to Valkyrie."**_

_**He sighed, picking up the pink tumbler and throwing it into the sink to be washed later. "Why?"**_

"_**Not your concern."**_

_**He rolled his eyes, crossing his arms across his chest. "We've been over this before. My wife, the mother of my daughter; **_**definitely **_**my concern."**_

_**She closed her eyes in resignation, taking a deep breath. "There is something of Valkyrie's that was stolen from her. Stolen from all the Senshi, in fact. I am attempting to retrieve them. To do so, I need one of her possessions. Something that was meaningful to her."**_

"…_**Huh?" He blinked as her glowered. "This object… is it with who I think it's with?"**_

"_**Yes."**_

_**He eyed her for a moment before nodding slowly. "Then, okay. So long as you get it away… okay." Only a few minutes later, he was hesitantly handing over his wife's wedding ring. He'd made sure to keep it close by since it had been thrown at him by the same woman now standing in front of him. **_'I can't believe I'm doing this. I _must _be crazy…'

_**She closed her eyes as her hand closed over the ring. "Yes…" She whispered, her eyes fluttering open, "It should work. It feels like Valkyrie."**_

"_**Áine." Her eyes drifted up, not at all surprised by the hostile look in his eyes. "If you destroy that in any way, then the Gods cannot stop my wrath."**_

"_**Your turn to be poetic?" She asked sarcastically, but still nodded her head in acceptance. "I understand. Yet, if everything goes as planned, you may very well be on your knees thanking me." She smirked and disappeared in a orange haze, leaving him to gap incredulously.**_

Nephrite's eyes narrowed in thought as he recited the meeting to his friends. "So, yeah. That's what happened. And no, I don't know when those items were stolen from them or what they are." He added as he saw Zoisite open his mouth. "I just took her word and gave her something because I, Terra help me, have faith in her." He paused, his brow furrowed. "After we found out about her pregnancy, I think it changed her. Made it more real to her. She told me that since we know, it's only a matter of time before Kunz does as well. She's out for revenge and I'm positive she's going to get it one way or another."

"You gave her Val's wedding ring." Jadeite uttered knowingly.

Nephrite's eyes widened in surprise. "How'd you know that?"

"Because it's what I would have done." The Far-Eastern general answered, "Val loved being a wife and a mother. The ring was a symbol of that aspect of her life; it was definitely meaningful."

"I don't understand." Zoisite suddenly declared, "Why would she destroy Valkyrie's apartment? What could she gain from it?"

The American shrugged. "Didn't ask because one, you know as well as I that Áine wouldn't have told me. And two, I honestly don't think I _want _to know. Not yet, anyways. It's too soon." He cleared his throat as his friends shifted uncomfortably; Valkyrie's death was hanging over them all. "So, do we tell Cadeyrn what his sister is up to?"

"When he finally gets here." Jadeite grumbled, "He should have been here at five!" He turned accusing eyes to Nephrite. "And you too! Am I the only one excited for a real mission!?"

"I went from frantically boxing up Val's apartment to being in a toy store for _three_ hours." The mahogany-haired man answered darkly, glaring, "Went in with one objective: get your chemistry set and get out. But I have a _toddler_." He groaned, rubbing his forehead. "I barely got out with my wallet in tact."

Zoisite chuckled. "That's because you're a sucker for her mother's eyes." He shook his head as the man answered with a dreamy "_Yeah…_" "Speaking of Rose, Darien was okay with watching her tonight, right?"

Nephrite nodded, never realizing his next words might very well be the generals' undoing. "Yeah, he was just fine with it. Rose was ecstatic; the past few days she's been asking me when she'd seen him again. I think she wants to show him something…"

* * *

A few blocks away, Darien sat down on his couch intent to drink his umpteenth cup of coffee in a vain attempt to stay awake long enough for Rose to fall asleep --which he hoped was in an hour, at the most. He was still exhausted from his late night drive yesterday and could barely keep his eyes open as it was. He took a nice long sip of the dark black liquid only to choke on the swallow as a picture was thrust into his field of vision. "You see Mama, Dare-Dare?"

He forced the lump down his throat as he looked down into Rose's shiny eyes disbelievingly. It was only the hot splash of coffee against his thumb that informed him that if he didn't put the cup down, he'd never get the stain his shaking hands were sure to cause on the carpet. "M-may I see the picture, please?" He practically whispered as he sat the cup down and met the toddler's eyes. She eagerly handed it over, and he swallowed thickly as all the exhaustion abruptly fled him. "This… is your Mom? Valerie Davis?"

"Uh-huh!" She declared proudly before going into explanation, "G'anpa say Mama in big skool. Dare-Dare go big skool. See Mama."

His eyes roamed over the picture in a state of shock before managing a shaky, "I--I'm sorry Rose. I haven't seen her at my school."

"Mama…" He looked down at her whisper only to see big tears beginning to flow down her red cheeks. "No! Want Mama 'ack! M--miss Mama…"

He sat the picture down on the coffee table and quickly picked up the toddler. She grabbed onto his neck for all she was worth, burying her face as her body began to shake with her sorrow. "Rose," He whispered, his eyes voluntarily going back down to the picture. "I'm so sorry…"

The words sounded empty but he didn't know what else to say when a two-dimensional Makoto was staring back at him, her green eyes filled with life and joy. When the last time he'd seen that same face was just before Sailor Jupiter was consumed by a storm with not even a body to be found afterwards.

Fortunately for him, Rose was usually a happy child and it didn't take much coaxing to get her to calm down. If anything, it only took a few calming words and a promise that he was going to talk to her father about her mother (she took this as to mean he would gather information but it was going to be much, _much _more than that). He then dressed her in her unicorn pajamas and placed her down in front of him, planning to have her new coloring book and package of jumbo crayons occupy her until she feel asleep.

Things had been going well for twenty minutes --he halfway through another cup of coffee and Rose a few pages into her coloring book-- when she seemed to remember something else. She put her crayons down before standing in front of him, peering into his eyes curiously. He suppressed an amused smile. "Something wrong?"

Her eyes narrowed. "Why Dare-Dare eye not 'old _now_?"

"Gold." He whispered, his jaw dropping. Rose had seen the gold eyes _too_!? "When were my eyes gold?" He asked carefully.

"W'en Dare-Dare 'ook out wind-oh lots." She answered without hesitation, nodding.

His eyes narrowed. The day Luna had attacked Serena in the park and he'd heard her scream. When he'd been impatiently waiting for Neil. "Did I say anything funny?" He asked seriously.

Her head tilted to the side as she seemed to think this over. "'all Dada N--nerf?" She made an impatient sound, shaking her head. "No. 'all Dada N--neph-- right? Yeah!" She giggled, clapping her hands. "Dare-Dare 'all Dada Neph--right. 'ike Unca Zoo an' Unca 'ed do!"

It was sheer willpower that didn't cause the mug in his hand to drop and crash against the coffee table. Darien stared at the toddler incredulity; the exact same toddler that had caused every belief he had about her and her father to crumple with one innocent statement. "Oh. My. God."

* * *

"Um." Motoki looked between the glowering Jadeite sitting in the middle of his couch, to where Jadeite and Zoisite were suiting up on the other side of the room. He knew he'd miss something when he was forced to work at the arcade longer when one of his coworkers didn't show up. "What's going on?"

Jadeite's head snapped up with a glare. "What's going _on_ is that you should have been here--" He looked at his watch-- "an hour and a _half_ ago so we're behind schedule! What's going on is that this is our first real mission in who _knows_ how long and, apparently, I can't come! How fair is _that_!?"

"You have more to test now." Nephrite's voice was slightly muffed as he pulled a black t-shirt over his head, "So it doesn't matter if it's not fair or not. You're still doing your part in our mission --it's just in your hotel room instead of field work." He flattened the shirt down his stomach. "A mission is a mission."

"So shut up and stop whining like a baby." Zoisite added with a grin as he looked up momentarily from lacing his black boots. He only laughed as Jadeite sent him a dark glare.

"I would have already been done with the testing if you'd _remembered_ the microscope I needed!" The redhead protested, "You were supposed to get it while you go my chem set--"

Nephrite shrugged. "I thought it had one; it was an honest mistake. I went right back to the store for you."

"--and don't even get me _started_ on the fact they came from a _toy_ store!" Jadeite continued to rant with a glower. "You couldn't have gone somewhere… I don't know… more _professional_!?"

"Too short notice." The American countered, "And you could have been working on the testing for a few minutes now, you've just been pouting."

"Jed," Zoisite began as he buckled the fasteners on the side of his vest, "I want to play mad scientist too, but I'm willing to do what needs to be done. So should you. Besides, it's not like it's some super operation. We're only sneaking into the hospital and borrowing a few files. We're just being over-the-top because it's been so long."

Motoki's eyes slid between the North American and European generals. Black pants, black shirts, combat boots, Zoisite was even wearing a pocketed vest. He, on the other hand, was wearing a white zip-up sweater, blue jeans, and red and black sneakers; they _looked_ like they were going on a mission, _he_ looked like he was going to the local video store. "Did I miss a memo or somethin'?" He scratched his head again, gesturing to himself.

"Nope." Nephrite said cheerily, "You're going to be our decoy. I wanted to get you drunk but Zoi made a valid point when we don't know what _kind_ of drunk you are. We don't need the police involved in any way, shape, or form in cause things go sour with you. So I let him talk me out of it."

The Solarian blinked. "…Come again?"

In the time it took the generals to inform Cadeyrn of his part in the mission, Jadeite managed to cheer himself up while setting up his chemistry set. Motoki watched as the Far-Eastern general retreated into Zoisite's room, now wearing a practically malicious grin and a pair of goggles, to where the others were standing beside him. "Is it really a good idea to leave him here like this?" He couldn't help but ask nervously, "Unsupervised with a chemistry set? Isn't that a little… _dangerous_?"

"Yeah. Probably." Nephrite shrugged. "But it can't be helped, which is why I got the junior set. Jed's the only one qualified to test the blood samples the way they need to be tested. He'll be able to spot symptoms of a poison better than anyone --he knows them like the back of his hand. And once he knows the pattern of the poison, he can test your sister's blood for signs of it too."

Motoki's eyes slid to Zoisite involuntarily. "…I thought you were the one who was going to test them?"

"Nah. Jed's better qualified." The European general said with a wise nod, "He used to be a salamander(1)." As Cadeyrn's eyes grew wide in disbelief, he felt his own roll. "Not literally, you idiot. He used to be a salamander… you know, his trademark or whatever?"

Nephrite nodded before snorted suddenly. "Yeah. Like Kunz's was a unicorn."

Zoisite instantly laughed. "Yeah. Like that." Both generals shared a grin, silently wishing their stern friend was with them so they could tease him about their inside joke.

"Cut chatting, _ladies_!" Jadeite snapped as he popped his head into the room again. His eyes slid over all the men, a scowl on his face. "I don't even get to leave this hotel and I'm _still _the only one excited for a real mission!?"

Motoki found himself snorting this time. "'course not. Because breaking into, and stealing files from, a hospital isn't a felony _at all_. And I'm surely not aiding and abiding you. Can't you see I'm jumping for joy?" As the others all broke out into laughter, he rolled his eyes. Silently he swore to himself that he would never do a mission with Endymion's generals for the rest of his life. Ri-dic-u-_lous_.

* * *

'_This is not breaking and entering. This is not breaking and entering._' Darien chanted to himself as Rose rooted around in one of the fake trees decorating the hall, particularly the one closest to her and her father's apartment. In hindsight, he'd just tell Neil --_'Nephrite. Good god._' He shook his head in disbelief-- that his not even _two_-year daughter knowing where they hid the key wasn't a very good idea in the first place. Never mind the fact _he_ had been the one to ask her if she had a picture of her parents together, or of her "Unca Zoo" and "Unca 'ed" -- though he had a horrible feeling he already knew who _they_ were. Rose had eagerly volunteered that she had lots of pictures at home, so he'd agreed when she had asked if he wanted to see them; that wasn't taking advantage of a toddler's obliviousness, was it?

He stifled a groan as Rose let out a triumphant cry, the silver key in one of her hands. Yes, it _was_ taking advantage of Rose's obliviousness but it was _also_ for a good cause. That's all that mattered, right? According to her, her parents were _Sailor Jupiter _--for lack of a solid civilian name-- and _Nephrite_.

Okay, so he doubted Rose was in any kind of _real _danger from Neil. The man did freak out appropriately --'_though extra melodramatically,_' he mused to himself-- like any concerned father would when Rose wandered away. He just couldn't imagine Dark Kingdom general Nephrite running after his daughter (or having one at all, really). And, furthermore, he _also_ doubted that the girl he knew as Makoto would ever hurt a child either. No, the problem was that they were her _parents_. Everyone was assuming _Serena _was the one married to a Dark Kingdom general! Rose was living proof that Nephrite and Sailor Jupiter had had a relationship in this lifetime --maybe even something they had continued on from the Silver Millennium.

"Dare-Dare, Rose open 'oor!" He blanched as he looked down to see Rose tugging on his hand in an effort to pull him toward the apartment. She was smiling, a proud gleam in her eyes. "Rose open _biiig_ 'oor _all_ by 'erself."

He returned her smile as he let her tug him inside the apartment. "You did a good job. You're going to be as tall as me before you know it."

She gasped, her smile getting wider. "Dare-Dare _'all_! 'ike Dada!" She let go of his hand and eagerly ran further into the apartment, not seeing how his weak smile disappeared.

Darien groaned, running a hand over his face as he closed the door with the other. "What am I doing?" He muttered, "This isn't right. I know it, so why am I here?" He looked around the apartment, taking in the simple furniture and the scattered toys dotting the floor. He'd been in here a few times before and never once had he thought of it as a cover for a Dark Kingdom general, one that should be _dead_. And to be honest, he still didn't think that. This was _Neil's_ apartment; his American neighbor who was a single father.

"Dare-Dare!" He watched despairingly as Rose rushed back into the room, a photo album she would barely put her small arms around clutched to her chest. "Baby Rose!"

A genuine smile tugged at his mouth as she pulled herself onto the couch and grinned at him. _She _loved her parents, never once suspecting something was wrong besides her mother being missing. She told him herself that she was a psychic empath and there was no doubt in his mind, based on his experiences with her, that that wasn't true. Shouldn't that mean she could read people fairly well? And if that wasn't _enough_, she was always with her father; she, better than _anyone _in the world, would know if he was evil or not. "So just how cute were you when you were a baby, Rose?" He asked with a grin as he sat beside her.

Her grin widened as she pulled open the album. "Lots!" She declared, pointing to the first picture in the album. He laughed as he saw Makoto, holding a baby in her arms, with a carbon copy of Nephrite --and he did mean _Nephrite_, complete with the long hair-- hugging her from behind with his chin on her shoulder.

Just when he's ready to trust Rose's judgment, he sees something that causes every rational fiber in his being to rebel at its possibility. To put it simply: irony sucked. "You know, you really were cute." He mused as he glanced at the child, who nodded eagerly in reply. "Where were you born? In America?" He turned the pages, genuinely curious, to see various photos of Makoto --'_Valerie_', he corrected himself mentally-- or Neil holding Rose or just the baby herself in various poses on various blankets. He glanced back to his companion when she didn't answer only to see her face scrunched up in thought. "Rosie-Poise?"

She frowned. "Rose no know."

"It's alright." He comforted, "You were only a baby--" He stopped, his eyes going wide. Correction: irony _really_ sucked. His lips twisted down in worry as he gazed at the photo he'd come across for another long moment before coming to a decision. His eyes slid over to Rose curiously. "Do you remember Serena? The one with really long hair who was holding Hotaru at the hospital?"

She instantly nodded, smiling widely. "Pweddy lady!"

"Well, what do you say about visiting the pretty lady now?"

* * *

Serena hummed under her breath as she fluffed one of her pillows --a pretty blue star shaped one that she loved-- and placed it on her bed. It was only eight o'clock but she was exhausted all the way around --physically, mentally, and emotionally. Her lips turned down as she thought of what had happened this afternoon. '_Poor Ami. She finally really likes someone and he already has a wife. Kind of…_'

"Why am I not surprised it's bunny pajamas?"

She jumped around with a startled squeal, fixing wide eyes on the threshold of the bedroom. "D-_Darien_?" She uttered disbelievingly, resisting the urge to rub her eyes. "What are you doing here?" '_…There's a goofy grin on my face, isn't there?_' She frantically tried to smooth it away before he noticed.

He chuckled. "You know, your mother said the exact same thing a few minutes ago. Without the giddy smile and grin, of course." His smile quickly faded, even as she blushed and looked away in embarrassment. "Unfortunately I'm not here for a social visit. I'm here for a… I don't even know how to describe it. I just--" He shook his head. "--know you need to know what I just learned but at the same time, I wish you didn't. It's…" He let the words fade away.

The blonde frowned in concern as she walked up to him. "What's going on? Did something happen?"

"You could say that." He looked down at her pensively, trying to decide how to break the news to her, before deciding not to beat around the bush. "I was babysitting Rose when she decided to show me a photo of her mother and ask if I had seen her. She believes she is missing."

"Okay…"

"I almost wish she hadn't told me." He uttered softly, reaching out to run a thumb under her left eye, "It's going to drag up so many memories; I know what that's like and it is never easy. And it might all be for nothing except… except trouble, maybe."

Her brow furrowed as an unease began to grow in her heart. "You're not making any sense." In answer, he sighed and leaned toward her. She closed her eyes as he kissed her forehead, but when she open them back up, she was staring at a picture of Makoto. "I--I don't understand." She whispered, taking the photo gently as her eyes skimmed it. It was typical Makoto --brunette hair, green eyes, bright smile-- but she couldn't seem to remember the girl owning the white and brown gingham dress she was wearing or, _especially_, the emerald Jupiter-symbol pendant around her neck.

"This is Rose's mother. Neil's wife."

"What?" She asked, her eyes snapping up to Darien disbelievingly. "That isn't possible. Makoto wasn't married to anyone. Definitely not a _mother_." She felt her eyes watering as he stared at her steadily. "This--this isn't funny Darien. Stop it."

"I'm sorry, it isn't a joke." He murmured. He looked around briefly before ushering her back further into her room so the conversation couldn't be easily over heard. He knew as long as he was in her bedroom, the door had to stay open but that didn't mean they had to hover near it. "Come on, this should just be between us."

She let him lead her back over to her bed and she didn't even hesitate in sitting down on it heavily, her eyes focused on the photo. "I still don't understand, Darien." She whispered as she looked up at him.

He sighed and kneeled in front of her, placing his hands on her knees. "Rose told me her grandfather said her mother was going to a big school. A college, I gather, and she asked if I'd seen her at mine."

Her jaw dropped momentarily before she frantically shook her head. "Makoto was a sophomore in _high school_. She--she was just going to turn seventeen." Her eyes widened as he turned the photo over and drew her attention to the notation on the back. '_Valerie Davis, age 18. April 29th--_' "It says it was taken two years ago." She whispered before shaking her head , "That--that makes no sense. Who's Valerie Davis?"

"I think," He began slowly, "it's Makoto. The _real_ Makoto two years ago." He paused, watching sadly as the tears gathered in her confused eyes. "There's… more, unfortunately. About Rose's father."

She laughed, a dry sound. "What? Was Makoto married to a Dark Kingdom general too?" She gasped at the hesitant look in Darien's eyes. "No… tell me no."

"How about a 'I don't know'?" He sighed, rubbing a tired hand over his face. "Rose made an interesting comment not long after she dropped that bombshell. She asked me why my eyes weren't gold now."

The blonde gasped in disbelief and worry. "When did she see them?"

"When we were waiting for her father the day Luna attacked you in the park. I asked if I said anything funny and--" He winced, reaching into his right back pocket to pull out the other photos he'd borrowed. "--and the outcome was her showing me a photo album at her apartment and me stumbling across these."

She was sure her eyes couldn't have gotten larger than they already were but they did. "Oh my god…" She gasped, taking the two photos out of his hands and holding them in front of her face. Her eyes floated from an image of Makoto holding a baby, the _Dark Kingdom_ general Nephrite standing behind her with a smile; to the image of the generals Nephrite, Jadeite, and Zoisite all laughing together --_happily_. "I-- _oh my god_." Her eyes drifted up to Darien in shock. "She--she… you-- _what?_" She stuttered helplessly.

"When Rose saw me with gold eyes, she said I called her father _Nephrite_. Like her Uncle Jed and Zoo-- I'm assuming she means Zoi-- do." He shook his head regretfully. "And, I hate to admit it, but when you think about it Neil _does _look like Nephrite."

She tried to stop it but before her brain could process the command, her hand had turned both photos over and her eyes focused in on the back of the phone with the baby. "Neil, Valerie, and baby Rose Davis. March 3rd--" She stopped herself short, unable to say the year out loud. It would make it too real.

"Two years ago." He whispered, "Not long before the other picture of her was taken. Rose's birthday is in February." His eyes focused on the other photo in her trembling hand. "And the one with the generals… it says 'The boys in front of garden, November.'"

"Last fall." She whispered, before letting out a hysterical laugh. "Last fall, Darien; it was taken _last_ fall." She hadn't even noticed she'd started crying until he swiftly seated himself beside her on the bed and enveloped her in a tight hug. "Today… today was supposed to be a _good_ day." She choked out against his chest, "We… we were just starting with this _thing_ between us. And-- and I was going to prove to you and everyone that I could be smart by s-_studying_. But then Ami couldn't get her guy and--and," She hiccupped. "--then Makoto. Or--or Valerie or-or _whatever_. And the generals and Rose!" She gasped, looking up. "Oh no! Where's Rose!?"

"Shh. It's okay." He answered as he began to run a calming hand up and down her back. "She's downstairs with your parents. She was staring to fall asleep on the drive over, so they offered to watch her for me while I talked to you. She's just fine; she doesn't know anything about this."

She nodded, taking a few deep, slow breaths in an attempt to control her crying. "She-- she thinks her mom's missing, right?" She questioned as her eyes fell to the floor where she'd dropped all of the photos absently.

"Yes." He paused, his brow crinkling in thought. "She told me she last saw her mother in June, and based on the fact she said June in _English_, I'm betting she and her father were still living in America at that point. They became my neighbors in August."

"And, her _grandfather _was the one to say she was in Japan, in college?" She sniffled a few times, "But Makoto started going to _my _school in September. She told everyone she got kicked out of her old _high _school for fighting. And--and if Rose and Neil think she's _missing_…"

"I think," He began slowly as he leaned away a little to look her in the eyes, "that she might have been _sent_ away. If her _father _was the only one to know where she was…"

Her lips parted in shock as her eyes widened a little. "Do you think it was because of Rose?"

"Yeah." His brow furrowed. "It makes sense. Based on the photos, Valerie would be in her early twenties right now, meaning she'd be eighteen or so when Rose was born. And if her parents didn't approve…" He let the words hang in the air as he shrugged. "What I _can't _make sense of is why she'd pretend to be in _high_ school and, before I knew Valerie was Makoto--"

"_Might _be." She interjected swiftly, "We don't know for sure."

"We don't." He agreed, "But before I knew it was a possibility, I wondered if she was using an alias because Valerie Davis isn't a name that'd blend in easily in a Japanese culture. Neil's been looking for her since he got here, I'm _sure _of it, which told me she had to have been using one. But, _why_? And why didn't she call him and tell her family she was okay or anything? She practically up and left without a word from what I understand."

"But the Makoto I knew would _never _do that." The blonde frowned worriedly. "But, what are we going to do about Neil? If he really is _Nephrite_, then who was the man we fought? It _couldn't _have been the same person; it just couldn't. They're too different."

"It means that I'm going to do what I promised Rose." He pursed his lips grimly. "I'm going to confront Neil about all this and find out what the hell is going on and who he and his wife are."

"I'm coming with you."

He looked down, his eyes softening. "Are you--"

She cut him off, shaking her head. "I'm going. You aren't going to persuade me not to, or stop me or anything else. I _am _going." She took a shaky breath, trying not to break down into tears again. "Makoto--Makoto was one of my _best _friends. It's already bad enough she's …gone, I can't handle wondering if my whole friendship with her was a-- a lie or not."

He lifted up her head, smiling slightly. "I was going to ask if you're okay with going tomorrow morning. I wouldn't stop you from going; you're right, you were one of Makoto's best friends and I think that means you have every right to know what's going on as well. And if Neil doesn't like it? Do damn bad for him."

She giggled but it soon turned into a watery sob and she lunged back at him, wrapping her arms around him and burying her face into his chest. "I--I'm sorry." She shuttered into his red t-shirt, "For--for being such a crybaby."

"You're not." He murmured as he placed a kiss on top of her head, "You just miss her. I understand what it's like to miss someone. You can cry for however long you want."

"I'm--I'm going to hold you to… that." She wheezed on a wet laugh, "You--you can't complain about how un--" She hiccupped, "--uncomfortable you are."

He chuckled, wrapping his arms around her more firmly. "No problems there. I'm very comfortable with you in my lap." His smile dimmed slightly as he rested his head onto of hers. "I just wish you could finally be happy…"

"I'm happy enough right now." She whispered, nudging herself deeper into his arms so she wouldn't see her blush, "I missed… missed you today."

He smiled. "I missed you too, Odango." He chuckled as she pushed him away slightly and glared up at him; he didn't know how she did it, but she managed to be cute, intimidating, and funny all that the same time. _'Typical Serena…'_

She sniffled a few more times, making her nose even redder than it was before, as fiery blue irises glared at him through puffy, red-rimmed eyes. "Don't call me Odango." She frowned slightly. "I thought we're supposed to be nicer to each other? You know, with this… _thing_?"

"Absolutely right." He chuckled as he pulled her back into his arms, "I apologize. Anything I can do to make it up to you?"

She was glad she was buried back in his arms; it have her enough courage to ask him what she really wanted. "C-could…" She cleared her throat. "Could you stay here? Until I fall asleep?" He didn't answer right away and the next thing she knew she was babbling. "O-oh. Okay, you don't have to. I, uh, know Rose should probably get back to bed. And--and you should sleep too, so we can talk to Neil. What time should we--" She cut herself off with a startled squeak as he pulled her closer and tipped them over so they were lying side-by-side at the head of her bed. She blinked over at him, her face scant inches away from his. "This mean yes?"

He chuckled. "Yes, it does. You didn't give me a chance to say anything."

She instantly grinned brightly, sniffling a few times as they adjusted themselves into a more comfortable position. She looked up at him from where she was lying her head on her shoulder, him propped up into a slouching position on her pillows. "Thank you, Darien."

He grinned, shaking his head. "No problem." She smiled and buried herself closer to his body heat, content that she was giving up sleeping under her warm sheets to lay beside him instead --she was pretty sure she was getting the better deal. She was almost asleep, lulled by his even breaths, when she heard him whisper. "…You do know I have no intentions to _stop _calling you Odango, right?"

She opened one eye, glaring, and slapped him in the stomach. "_Jerk_. Now be quiet, I'm trying to sleep." Soon enough, his quiet chuckles turned into gentle snoring but she couldn't bring herself to be mad at him for falling asleep first. It only brought a smile to her face because it would be something she could tease him about in the morning.

It never occurred to her to wake him up, either, and as a result they both feel asleep together, tangled on top of her bedspread.

* * *

"It's a little past midnight." Nephrite whispered to his companion. They'd managed to sneak into a decently-sized storage room in the hospital by eleven, miraculously twenty minutes ahead of schedule, and had been lying in wait for the perfect time to get the records. They'd only had two close calls so far, a good fortune by their standards, but what they didn't need was another nurse coming by for supplies.

"The guard change should be occurring." Zoisite added unnecessarily.

Nephrite nodded, pulling the ski hat that was hiding his hair more firmly down his head, and lifted up his walkie-talkie. "Cadeyrn, everything all clear? Over."

There was a bit of a loud static that made both men wince and look around nervously before Motoki's hushed voice came over clearly. "Yes, sirs. I'm still outside by my lookout post, no problems out here. The night nurse on the ground floor just left her station though; I think to grab something from the cafeteria. Over."

Zoisite grabbed the talkie before Nephrite had a chance to say anything in reply. "Which way did the night nurse go? Left or right? Over."

There was a bit of crinkling on the other end, signaling the Solarian was pulling out the floor plan Nephrite had managed to …borrow… from the hospital earlier that week so they could have a good route inside and out of the hospital. "Left, definitely left. If you two stick to the route you laid out, then you should have no problems getting down to the basement." The was a slight pause and the rustling of clothing before Cadeyrn spoke again. "You might be in luck. It looks like the guard that just went on duty is checking up on something in the parking lot. Now's the time to move down to the records. Over."

"Thanks, Cadeyrn." Nephrite whispered, "You know what to do when things go downhill, right? Over."

"Yeah, yeah." The man's instantaneously grumble came over the talkie, "Become desperate, act like a madman, etcetera. But I draw the line at acting like a drunken moron and doing the little teapot dance." Both Zoisite and Nephrite slapped their hands over their mouth to muffle their snorts and chuckles --that had been one of Jadeite's best suggestions the whole night. "Never another mission with you idiots. _Never_. Over."

"Just keep on the lookout and tell us if anyone else moves. Over and out." Nephrite handed it back over to Zoisite and the man turned the volume almost all the way down and stuffed it into one of his vest pockets. "Looks like it's time to move, buddy. Ready?"

The brown-haired man gave a smirk Jadeite would be proud of. "More than."

* * *

He did an odd mixture of a pleased grin and a grimace as the portly woman nodded at his picture, pointing to a bed a few rows away. "_Foul tongue, that one._" She told him in the native language, "_Only been here a short time._"

"_Thank you very much._" He replied in kind, fighting back a sudden sigh of relief. He wasn't actually sure what he was relieved about. Maybe that he had found her, or maybe that she still had a foul tongue. Both, probably. He folded his picture and put back it back in his pocket before beginning to pull out some money. The blonde-haired woman quickly stopped him, however.

"_No, no._" She thrust her chin in the general direction she had before. "_She promised not to be here long. Makes sure it happens and that is all the tip I need._" She grinned cheerily as she turned around to walk back to her office. "_She makes the others nervous. Always glaring at them._"

He couldn't help it, he laughed. He shook his head and turned around himself, eyeing the female on the bottom bunk of the bed as he walked closer. She was laid out on top of the starched beige blanket that all the beds here had, her hair fanned out around her head and looking slight damp --probably from a recent shower. She was wearing a pair of blue jeans and a gray turtleneck sweater; both stained, worn down-looking, and had holes. The black socks she was wearing had holes in them, too. One of her forearms covered her eyes and blocked the sight of him as he stopped beside the bed; he almost believed her to be sleeping. Almost.

"Well, well, well. It seems my suspicion _was_ right."

He watched as she tensed before the hand covering her eyes dropped down beside her waist and she sat up swiftly. She stared up at him, her eyes roaming his form in disbelief, before groaning. She ground the heels of her palms against her eyes. "_Fuck_."

He smiled in amusement. "Is that really a proper way to greet your father, Valkyrie?"

* * *

Done: July 5, 2009 5 p.m.

Posted: July 5, 2009 8:30 p.m.

You know what that means. Next chapter is pretty much all about Valkyrie and where she's been. :)

Hmm. So I hope I did a decent job with the Dare/Sere scene near the end; it felt awkward to me, though, just like I thought it would. It might be because I'm so used to them being on the fence about their feelings but now they're in some sort of relationship. Oh, well. I hope you enjoyed anyways!

Soon Nephrite will have to make some explanations! …Or will he?

1. Salamander --many species of salamanders excrete poisonous substances when they feel threatened. And, in mythology, they are renowned for their poisonous and fire attributes. Quoted from my _The Element Encyclopedia of Magical Creatures_ (which is pretty cool if you like that kind of thing) by John and Caitlin Matthews (which goes without saying that I am not, meaning I am claiming no rights to it) "According to classical accounts, the Salamander was a great lizard whose bite was exceedingly poisonous. People believed it lived in volcanoes or could be found in the hottest part of fire." The fire attributes come from the fact that salamanders are well known for hibernating in logs. When the wood's brought in, the salamanders magically seem to appear. (Paraphrased from salamander (legendary creature) over at wikipedia)

I wasn't planning to, but I figure that since the Senshi are identified by their colors, why couldn't the generals be identified with something too? Thus they will be connected with various animals and draw powers/knowledge. And! Even better, the salamander's associated with fire --Mars, anyone? Salamanders can also regenerate lost limbs so we'll see what I can do with that. ;)

Please R/R, always appreciated. And it honestly is. :)

_Tiger Celeste._


	31. Chapter 31

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

**NOTE: **This chapter begins right after the last, yet there is a **8-hour **difference between Japan and where Valkyrie is. So, technically, it is earlier in the day as well. Oh, and a **warning**: she's pretty angry, thus a lot of expletives. I apologize in advance to those of you offended by harsh language. It was just the way I envisioned her reaction.

First off, I want to give a special shout out and thank you to _**Belle Usako**_ for listening to my ranting. :) It was very refreshing having someone to talk my ideas out with and you offered some really awesome advice. Second of all, I didn't mean to add as _nearly _much to this as I did but, oh well! It's done super early _so_…

On to the story~!

* * *

_-------------Last time--------------------------_

_He did an odd mixture of a pleased grin and a grimace as the portly woman nodded at his picture, pointing to bed a few rows away. _"Foul tongue, that one." _She told him in the native language. _"Only been here a short time."

"Thank you very much." _He replied in kind, fighting back a sudden sigh of relief. He wasn't actually sure what he was relieved about. Maybe that he had found her, or maybe that she still had a foul tongue. Both, probably. He folded his picture and put back it back in his pocket before beginning to pull out some money. The blonde-haired woman quickly stopped him, however._

"No, no." _She thrust her chin in the general direction she had before. _"She promised not to be here long. Makes sure it happens and that is all the tip I need." _She grinned cheerily as she turned around to walk back to her office. _"She makes the others nervous. Always glaring at them."

_He couldn't help it, he laughed. He shook his head and turned around himself, eyeing the female on the bottom bunk of the bed as he walked closer. She was laid out on top of the starched beige blanket that all the beds here had, her hair fanned out around her head and looking slight damp --probably from a recent shower. She was wearing a pair of blue jeans and a gray turtleneck sweater; both stained, worn down-looking, and had holes. The black socks she was wearing had holes in them, too. One of her forearms covered her eyes and blocked the sight of him as he stopped beside the bed; he almost believed her to be sleeping. Almost._

"_Well, well, well. It seems my suspicion _was _right."_

_He watched as she tensed before the hand covering her eyes dropped down beside her waist and she sat up swiftly. She stared up at him, her eyes roaming his form while disbelief shone in her eyes, before groaning. She ground the heels of her palms against her eyes. _"Fuck."

_He smiled in amusement. "Is that really a proper way to greet your father, Valkyrie?"_

_

* * *

_

She groaned again as he confirmed her worst fears. He _remembered_. She snorted after a second, dropping her hands. "Didn't know your name was Oliver Edwards." She squinted slightly, her eyes roaming up from the muddy brown boots he was wearing, to the tan carpenter pants, to the black t-shirt with some type of advertising logo she didn't recognize on it, to finally the red and black flannel hunting jacket. She snorted again. "You sure as hell don't dress like my father, either. I don't think he's ever worn anything so shabby in his entire life." Her eyes drifted up to the man's face and red hair curiously. "Must have been some plastic surgery job though, _Father_. Not to mention those hair plugs… The last time I saw you, you had a head of silver hair." She smirked. "Or at least, what was _left _of your hair considering you were getting a receding hairline." She whistled through her teeth, leaning back on her elbows. "Damn. All that must have put you back a pretty penny. It's a total transformation."

"That's enough, Valkyrie." The man snapped, "What the hell is your problem?"

"My problem?" She repeated, a dark scowl crossing her face as she stood up. She felt a flash of pleased victory shoot her as she saw he was only a few inches taller than her, meaning she could meet his eyes easily. In the last lifetime, it had been impossible to do without him hunching over or sitting down. "My _problem? _Oh, gee, I don't know. How about the fact that I'm in fuckin' _Norway. _With no papers or identification, let alone _useful _money! The U.S. Embassy is suspicious and won't let me _leave _the country because there's no record of me arriving! I've been going from youth hostel to youth hostel trying to find a fuckin' way to figure _**anything **_out and now _you're _here! What the hell do you think is my problem!?"

He winced as he noticed more than a few of the room's other occupants turn to her outburst, watching in avid attention. European travelers they may be, but he knew most of them could probably understand the English she was sprouting. "Come on, let's go." He grabbed her upper arm, intent on pulling her outside, but she held her ground.

"I don't fuckin' think so. Do I look like I want you around, _Thor_(1)?" She growled, yanking fiercely, but he only increased his grip.

"I don't care." He bit out, beginning to drag her amongst her vicious curses and hisses, "I don't care how much you might not want me around. I'm here to help you and you're damn well going to accept that help whether you like it or not."

"What makes you so sure I will?"

He glared over his shoulder. "So you're saying you _don't _want to see your family again? Remember, _Rose?_ I didn't think you would be as heartless as forgetting about your own daughter, Valkyrie, _or _your husband." She instantly stopped struggling, her lips parting slightly in shock at the knowledge he _shouldn't _have. "No matter how much you hate me," He continued calmer now that he had her attention, "it shouldn't matter as long as you can go back to the people you love."

"Fine." She snapped as she pulled on her arm again. He let her go willingly and she walked ahead of him, shoving open the door and leading them outside. "Hurry up and say your little spiel, already." She growled out as soon as she was leaning against the wall a little ways away from the door.

He eyed her as he tightened the ponytail his hair was in at the nape of his neck. "You're worse than I remember." He commented wryly, shaking his head, "Are you doing okay? No, _no_." He said quickly as she opened her mouth with a scowl. "I know. You're stranded in Norway. But, really, what did you expect when you called upon a Jovian storm? It wasn't as if it could transport you to Jupiter."

"I _expected _to _**die**_!" She retorted angrily, "Not wake up in an alleyway to some hobo trying to feel me up!"

His face darkened. "Some hobo was molesting you?"

She waved an impatient hand. "I already beat the shit out of him, he was the least of my worries. And don't you dare start acting like a concerned parent _now_." She huffed, crossing her arms. "You had plenty of time to do that before."

"I _was _always a concerned parent." He countered, "You were just too thickheaded to see it."

"No, you were too concerned about--" She cut herself off with a growl. "I'm not getting into a fight with you about this right now. I want to know how you know about Rose."

"Am I _not _supposed to know about my granddaughter?" He scowled as she rose an eyebrow. "Okay. She's my granddaughter one reincarnation over." He paused. "Did that sound as weird to you as it did to me…?" He smiled suddenly. "In any case, she really is adorable; quite similar in looks to how I remember you to be. And I approve of her name, as well."

She looked away, her eyes involuntarily misting over with tears. Her poor _baby_. She hadn't seen her in so long… "I named her after my grandmother. Like certain _other _fathers," Her eyes darted to Thor with a glare, "mine wasn't around quite a lot. This time my mother wasn't so different, either. My maternal grandmother Rose practically raised me. Of course I would honor her by naming my daughter after her."

"So you're saying that your mother's love of Jovian roses had nothing to do with it?"

Her eyes flickered back to him, seeing an old emotion flash through his eyes, before it disappeared as quickly as lightning. She didn't answer because if he was smart, he could see the rose earrings she was wearing and recognize their familiarity. "How do you know about Rose?" She repeated, "What have you been doing? _Spying _on my family?"

"Of course not." He answered, unperturbed by the accusation, "I saw the news of your 'death'. Of course I had to investigate. I had had a suspicion that you were transported through the storm into the land of your forefathers. Or," He amended, "the next closest place. Scandinavia."

"So, _what?_" She asked disbelievingly, "You rushed right over and started a valiant search for a woman who had once been one of your children?"

A smirk played on his lips. "Something like that, yes. I was in Russia and seen it on the internet. Did some research, thought about contacting Artemis--"

"Wait a minute." She interrupted, her eyes gleaming with suspicion, "You know Artemis?"

He blinked, taken back by the question. "Yeah. Doesn't most people that remember the Silver Millennium and, well, _realize _what they remember?" He shook his head when she pursed her lips and didn't answer. "Anyways, I wound up not contacting him because I realized that if I was wrong, I would have _tons _of pissed off people after me for leading them to believe you might still be alive. Nephrite at the helm, of course."

She smirked. "Gotta love that husband of mine. He can even teach you a thing or two about that hammer of yours."

He rolled his eyes. "So, I just continued with my research while I hightailed it over here as fast as I could. In the end, I realized I should have been paying a _lot _of attention to the world news out of Japan a _long _time ago." He shook his head disbelievingly. "I can't believe the Senshi have been active for almost a year and I'd had no clue. When I recognized Crown-Princess Serenity as being the _leader _of the Senshi, I knew something was a little wrong."

"More than a _little _wrong." She grumbled before catching sight of his inquiring look, "_No_, I don't know what's happening. All I know is that I thought I was a fuckin' _teenager _in high school! _Japanese _high school. I was right beside my princess and the other Senshi and had no _idea_." She bit her lip, rubbing her forehead as more tears clouded her eyes. "_Fuck_. I looked at my own _daughter_ and thought she was _Endymion's_! Isn't that some kind of twisted irony?!"

His hazel eyes softened in sympathy. "Valkyrie…" His eyes sharpened suddenly. "Endymion? You mean the Terran Prince _Endymion_?"

"Yes, Thor." She smirked again, even as her eyes shone with her tears. "Need I remind you we're _on _Terra? Of course its _King _would be on the planet and reincarnated like the rest of us. Besides, do you really think he would leave Serenity alone? They were _married_ and, I know it might be hard for you to gasp the concept but bare with me," Her smirk widened at his scowl. "_loved _each other. Remember?"

He shook his head. "Actually, I didn't remember until you said something. Only now can I recall the announcement Serenity made before…" He winced before shrugging. "I have no concerns with Terran affairs until they end up, well, blowing up in our faces."

"What? You mean you _aren't _learning from past mistakes?" She asked, her eyes widening innocently.

His face darkened. "I can see they taught _you _nothing. Ill manners, cursing, and sarcasm are still a large part of that sharp tongue of yours."

She only smiled. "Learned from the best."

"I was never _sarcastic_." He grumbled under his breath. "Do you want to hear what information I have or are you going to continue being a brat?" He sighed, running his hands over his face. "Holy Valhalla, you _are _worse than I remember."

She scowled. "Maybe because you never bothered to give me the time of day! Of course I seem worse when you barely saw me!"

He sent her a swift glare. "That's a lie. You were like this almost every time I saw you. _You _were the one that never bothered to give _me _the time of day. Your own damn father."

"Sure," She scoffed. "If it pleases you to remember it that way, fine. Go right ahead."

"That's it!" He thundered. He almost punched the area beside him before remembering it was stone and who he was --in other words, what that stone wall would do to his pathetic Terran fists. He glared at her instead. "I don't give a damn anymore. You can find our own way out of the country and to your family." He smirked darkly. "Now let's hope you can do it before all those Terran affairs blow up in our faces and you fail at protecting your Princess, _again_. Or before you miss your daughter's second birthday. That's coming up soon, right? In February?" He snorted, pushing off the building and beginning to walk away. "Have a nice life, Valkyrie. I'll be sure that the next time you're presumed dead, I'll take my chances and pretend you are. That way I won't have to deal with your sorry attitude anymore."

"_Bastard!_" She screamed at his retreating back, "You fuckin' bastard!"

He looked over his shoulder with a smirk. "I believe you're mistaken, Valkyrie. _You're_ the bastard here, remember? Your mother and I weren't married when you were born, or anytime after. The only legitimate child I had was Thrúd. But of course you know that. It was one of the reasons you hated her, wasn't it?"

Her face darkened in a murderous rage as he turned back around, whistling as he walked away. In the span of an eye blink, she was releasing a Jovian battle cry and tackling him. "You. Goddamn. Asshole!" She screamed, each word actuated by a punch on the man's body. "I hate you!" She ground her teeth together as he continued to lay on the ground, his eyes closed as he let her attack him. "Fight back, damn it!" She choked as tears began gathering in her eyes. "Stop being a coward, Thor! Be the fuckin' _god_ you were revered as!" She watched through blurry eyes as he relaxed the body she was sitting on even more. **"**_**Stop it!**_**"** Her fisted right-hand began to gather a hot-white light. "Fight back! Tell me what a horrid daughter I was! What a fuckin' disappoint I would be to my mother even now! Tell me, asshole!" She threw the electric-charged fist at him only to released a frustrated cry as the electricity dispersed into the air seconds before she made contact with his cheek. "Damn it! I fuckin' hate you!" She continued, pounding on his chest with each word. "Do you hear me!? I fuckin' hate you, Thor! _I hate you_!"

He continued to lay impassive, letting her pound on him without bothering to guard himself against her ferocious attacks. He didn't say a word as she continued with her rant; telling him what a horrible father he was, how he knew nothing of honor, how she would always hate him, how much she resented what he stood for and the family he had that never seemed to include her or her mother.

"_**Fight back! **_Tell me how much I'm _failing_ as a mother to Rose! How I should have been _there_ for her all these months!" She screamed, more electricity gathering in her hands only for it to disperse before it met his body again. "Tell me how much you and I are alike! How we _always_ end up failing and disappointing the people we care about no matter how hard we try not to! _Tell me!_"

'_Ah. The root of the problem._' Below his closed eyelids, Thor's eyes softened in sympathy as his former-daughter broke down into tears, her pounds mercifully weakening on his sore body, before she collapsed against his chest in a sobbing heap moments later. His eyes fluttered open to stare down at her but he didn't move so much as a finger; she would only resent him even more for trying to comfort what she thought was a weakness. '_But it's not, Valkyrie. It just shows how much you care. It's more than I ever could have allowed myself to show…_'

"_Fuck_," She laughed wetly after a few minutes, leaning back up and wiping at her eyes. "You're still useless at comforting people."

He rose his eyebrows. "What do you mean? I think my plan worked out quite well."

She rose her own eyebrows as she pulled herself off of him and stood. She laughed as he groaned, squeezing his eyes shut in pain. "Well, if that plan was getting the crap beat out of you, then yes. It _did_ work out quite well." She grinned, leaning down to offer her hand. "Come on, Almighty Thor. Let's go see if Mrs. Sørensen has some painkillers or anything."

He groaned again as she easily pulled him up, needing no assistance from him whatsoever. "Maybe mythology had it right and you really _are_ a merciful Valkyrie." He commented as she opened the door and ushered him inside, "Do you think it's time for me to go to Valhalla yet?"

"No." She eyed him as he limped beside her as they headed toward the manager's office. "You weren't slain. And I'm pretty sure Odin wouldn't appreciate you eating all his food(2)."

He laughed until moaning as the movement jousted his ribs. "I hate this pathetic Terran body. What I wouldn't give for all my rippling muscles again… Now _those_ were godlike."

She snorted, covering her mouth in an attempt to hide her giggles. His grin was hidden by another wince. '_Now this is the relationship we should have had, Valkyrie. We should have been a real family and for that I will always be sorry. Hopefully reuniting you with your new family will make up for some of my mistakes._'

* * *

"Ooh, stekte pølser! I haven't had any good sausages for such a long time… And potatoes!"

Valkyrie's eyes danced with amusement as she watched the man who had once been the most imposing king in the Silver Alliance shovel some of the local cuisine into his mouth with a contented smile on his face. He'd dragged her --literally-- to this restaurant, stating that food was needed for this kind of conversation. "Those painkillers kicking in yet?"

He flashed her a grin and she saw his eyes were slightly unfocused. "You know it. I feel a thousand times better." He waved his fork around, swinging it like he had once swung his mighty battle hammer Mjolnir(1). "Let's see me die during Ragnarök now! Well, okay, die _again_.(3)"

She concealed a smile behind the brown mug of coffee she was holding. '_Maybe six of those painkillers was a little too much at once._' A server sat down her own plate of food, prompting her to give a short thanks. Instantly both Thor and the woman winced at her crude language, making her blush. "I don't know Norwegian well." She explained as the server walked away, "Just what I can remember and even then that's only Jovian so it seems archaic…"

He waved a hand carelessly. "No problem. It took me years to start using the new form of this language. I still slip up myself. I'm surprised to see how much you remember, though. I highly doubt you spoken any Jovian, or Norwegian, until it was forced upon you with these circumstances."

She shrugged as she sat down her mug and began picking at her potpie, not biting into it despite the fact she was starving. She hadn't had a decent meal in forever it seemed like but she wanted to _know_ she would be getting answers first. "I didn't remember any of it, truthfully, until that storm struck me. Then I remembered _everything_. I realized that I wasn't Japanese, I _have_ parents, that I'd already graduated high school. Even my fragmented memory of the Silver Millennium was suddenly cleared up." She shrugged again. "The knowledge of the language, no matter how crude and archaic it is, has been a godsend. One of a very limited number of them these horrible past few weeks."

He frowned and it was obvious the food was quickly sobering him back up. "What happened? Why did you believe you were a Japanese teenager?"

"Don't you think _I_ want to know why?" She bit out before taking a deep breath in an attempt to control her anger. "It took being a damn vessel for a Jovian storm to remind me that I'm turning twenty-one in a week, married, and have a _daughter_. The last time I remember being me-- _Valerie Davis_-- is when I laid down beside Neph to go to bed, Rose next door in her nursery. In an apartment in _New York City_." She scowled down at her coffee mug. "The next thing I know, I'm in a Tokyo apartment and looking down at what I think is my dead-mother's wedding ring before storing it away in a closet. I have no fuckin' _clue_ what happened between those two points. There's nothing there; no memories, no feelings, absolutely _nothing_. It's like I didn't exist for three months of my life."

"What happened once you woke up in that alleyway?" He asked, wiping his mouth with a napkin.

"Like I said, I beat the crap out of that guy for trying to feel me up." She tapped her nails against the table in agitation at the memory. "Afterwards, I kinda stumbled around in a daze for a few hours --head pounding, freezing, and everything else-- before finally taking notice of my surroundings. Figured I was probably somewhere in Scandinavia based on how familiar the language sounded then I realized how _much_ I was freezing. I found my way to the first youth hostel then, just glad to be somewhere warm." She smiled faintly. "The owners took one look at me, cringing at my poor language as I tried to ask where I was, before shoving these clothes," She gestured down at herself. "in my arms and pushing me toward the showers."

"Charred?" He guessed, shoving a forkful of vegetables into his mouth.

She grinned. "You know it; I'd been de-transformed sometime during the strike, apparently. Probably when all my memories slammed into me. So I'd been walking around with burnt clothes, seared hair, smelled like I'd been on fire. All that good stuff." She shook her head. "To make a long story short, they told me I was in Norway and I spent that day and a good half of the next wondering why I wasn't dead and sorting out all my newfound memories. Then _that _night, I hitched a ride with a couple from England on their way to Oslo." She glowered. "That's where my good luck ended. I went to the U.S. Embassy as soon as it was open in the morning, thinking I'd be able to get to New York with their help, then I could travel back to Tokyo with my own money, but they only got suspicious when no record of me entering the country appeared. At least, _legally _entering it. They made me stay under the guise of trying to contact either my parents or Neil --that's Nephrite's name now." Thor nodded, shoving another forkful of food into his mouth. "But I was there for _hours _and they didn't do a damn _thing_ so I ended up leaving and going as far as I could on foot before nightfall. Been going from place to place around the border ever since, looking for a ship or ferry or anything else that'll give me passage to the European mainland for some work but," Her lips twisted down. "no one expects an _American __**woman **_to be able to understand how they work things. You shoulda seen the way one of the captains laughed at me."

Thor snorted. "That's his fault then. Missed one of the finest crew members that I've ever meet."

She looked at him with wide eyes, thrown off by the compliment, but quickly dismissed it as a fluke. "So, yeah. That's pretty much it. Just been wandering around in all these seaport towns with a hope of getting to the mainland. I figured if I can get there, I could make it to Artemis and he could get me back to Tokyo somehow."

"You couldn't contact him? Or even your parents?"

"No." She said shortly, gesturing with her hand and letting a handful of money fall into her palm. In disgust she threw it onto the table. "I can't even afford a local call on a payphone, let alone an international one. All I have is this Japanese Yen. Completely useless here."

His eyebrows rose up sharply. "How'd you do that?"

She grinned. "That's right, you never saw the wonder that is a Senshi subspace pocket. I never bothered to learn the technicalities but it's like this unlimited pocket that each of the Senshi have in another dimension or something. It's supposed to make things easier for us; like we could store weapons on the go and stuff. We never have to worry about thieves, either, cause it's only accessible by its Senshi." She scowled. "If I'd been smart, I'd have kept a spare of everything in it. Clothes, IDs, a _cell phone_."

"Now that would have been helpful on the siege of Callisto(4)--" He cleared his throat as he quickly cut off that train of thought. He wasn't the Jovian king anymore and never would be again. "The Embassy couldn't have exchanged that Yen for something more useful?"

She shrugged. "Said they could within a few days time. Like I told you though, I didn't stick around long. I wasn't gonna be locked up anywhere for crossing the border illegally." Her eyes narrowed. "Now it's your turn for story time. How did you find out about Rose --_and _Neil?" She added.

He rose an eyebrow and looked down at her meal pointedly and, after a brief staring contest between them, she rolled her eyes and stabbed her fork into the crust. She shoved the forkful of vegetables and meat into her mouth, clearing giving him a look that said "Are you happy now?" and he grinned before beginning. "First off, both of them found their way to Tokyo to look for you. Do you know why they would have suspected you to be there? I can only figure Neil saw you in a battle on the television or something but serious news pertaining to the Senshi doesn't get very far out of the country." He smiled ironically. "Bad for tourism if people knew monsters were running amok, you know. Most foreigners liken you to Sailor V --a _human _crime fighter."

She looked up at him, her eyebrows raised incredulously. "How do _you _know they thought I was in Tokyo? If I hadn't have seen Rose in my apartment building that one time--" His brow furrowed, making her roll her eyes. "Yes, Thor. It's so shocking that _some _of us can recognize our children with only one look."

"I know _all _my children off the bat." He shot back, looking offended. "I found _you_, didn't I?"

She scoffed. "Know all your children off the bat, huh? Then why is it I can remember a certain hunting expedition led by a man who didn't recognize his daughter and almost _shot _her with an arrow as a result?" He cleared his throat and looked down at his plate, making her smirk. "Yeah. That's what I thought."

He looked up with a smile. "In my defense, you followed us. _Snuck up _on us, actually, and it was the middle of the night; what did you expect? A warm welcome? And I _did _recognize you as soon as you began cursing!" He laughed boisterously. "How could I _not_? You made all the men in my party blush!"

She rolled her eyes again, trying to ignore the heat that stole up her face. "As I was _going _to say, if I hadn't seen Rose that one time, I would still believe she and Neil were in America wondering why I had run away from them or something. So how could _you _--who I haven't seen since we _died_ and has never even formally met Nephrite, let alone Rose-- know they were in Tokyo?"

He shrugged as his chuckles died down. "I have contacts. They'll find out things I want." He rolled his eyes as her mouth dropped open. "What? You don't think I _know _people? I was once the king of the second largest kingdom in the Silver Alliance, of _course _I have contacts. They're spread everywhere around the world." He shook his head impatiently as she continued to gape at him. "Do you have an answer?"

Her brow furrowed. "I don't know. Maybe Neil saw it on the news." She scowled suddenly. "Or my parents told him I went there just to spite him."

"Don't approve?"

She snorted. "Understatement of the year. I was barely eighteen when Rose was born; maybe not the best planning on Neph and mine's behalf but we'd finally found each other. I don't regret it in the least. Hell, they should be glad that we'd _already _been married the way I see it. They were just upset their plan for my life was _officially _ruined." She scoffed. "Like I wanted to be a lawyer anyways."

Thor's eyebrows shot up. "A _lawyer_?" A wry smile played on his features. "Well, you do seem to like arguing with people."

"Wanted me to follow in the family name." She elaborated, waving an impatient hand, "I learned my mistake in trying to appease my parents the first time around."

He frowned, wincing slightly, but decided not to breach _that _subject. "Anyways, I watched a news video of your 'death' on the internet and when I heard you calling upon a Jovian storm, I wasn't so convinced you were dead. I ended up contacting someone I know in Japan for information just before I flew over here to Scandinavia and started looking for you." He pointed down beside him on his side of the booth, where he'd sat his backpack. "He's been sending me things ever since. Want to see?"

She nodded absently, her mind reeling. She watched him pull a pair of reader glasses out of his shirt pocket before smirking as he put them on; they made the contrast between this modern-man and Thor even larger in her mind. A few seconds later, however, she smiled wryly as he pulled a laptop with a _very _familiar hammer on the cover skin. "I see you kept some semblance of yourself. I was starting to think those glasses were the final nail in Thor's coffin."

He shook his head as he pulled the lid open. "I've adapted, Valkyrie. This world has no use for a man whose only real talent was striking things with a hammer and conjuring storms --not when they have you." He typed a few things into his keyboard before looking up to see her smirk. "I've long ago accepted that Thor's time is gone and I cannot pretend to be a king when there is only one rightful man who can be that on this planet. That doesn't mean I'll forget the past, though. I _am _King Thor of Jupiter, I'm just more Howard Wilkins in this life."

Her nose crinkled. "That name doesn't suit you very well. Shoulda named you Donner(1), at least."

He shrugged, grinning. "You just got lucky, Mrs. Valerie Edwards-Davis. You can go by Val in both lives. Or, wait, it's just Davis, isn't it?" He nodded to himself, typing a few more things in, before flipping the computer around to face her. "Well, here it is."

Her eyebrows rose as she drew the laptop closer, taking in the full-screened, slightly blurry image of her with a laundry basket at her hip. "Is that a _security _footage still from my apartment building?" She clicked the arrow for the next picture in the slideshow, seeing an image of her with a backpack on walking toward an elevator.

He nodded, his red hair flashing in the dingy overhead lights. "It is."

_Click_; there was a picture with her walking with Ami and Serena. _Click_; a picture of her talking with Mrs. Morimoto --the elderly widow that lived a few apartments down from her. _Click_; a photo of her yelling at someone off screen. "This is very stalker-like." Her eyes darted up to Thor. "How much do you have?"

He shrugged. "Only a few more. I wanted to make sure it wasn't someone that just had a resemblance to you."

"What proved it? Did you catch me transforming or something?" She winced. If photos of that existed anywhere…

"May I?" He asked, pointing to the computer. She nodded, pushing it back over and watching his finger instantly begin to move around mouse pad. "This, actually, was what solidified it for me." He turned the laptop back around to reveal an obviously zoomed in image of a circular, flat emerald gemstone with the symbol of Jupiter etched into it in gold.

"My necklace." She whispered, her hand sliding up to fist where she could feel the object beneath her sweater. "Neil had it made not long after we found out I was pregnant…" She stared at the picture a little longer before realizing it didn't have that blurry, grainy quality the others had. "Someone took this in close range." She accused as he eyes slid up to Thor, "Who?"

"My contact." He stated simply, "It was before you 'died', obviously. I believe it was during an outing to the mall with Crown-Princess Serenity and… what's her name? You know, Mercury?"

"Albreda. Ami. Whichever." She shook her head. "Who the hell is this contact of yours?"

"My brother."

An eyebrow instantly shot up on her face. She doubted she'd have recognized one of her uncles when she thought she was Makoto but now, when she had full memories of _everything_, she still couldn't remember seeing one of them. "Which one? Baldur, Váli--"

"No. Robert." She face faulted. "He's been living in Japan for a number of years for… some kind of work." He shrugged halfheartedly. "I'm not exactly sure what it is but what I _do _know is that he has one of those on-and-off again relationships with a teacher at a high school. Your, or rather _Makoto's_, high school. A Sakura something. She's a math teacher."

She leaned forward, gasping. "You don't mean Sakura _Haruna!?_"

His brow furrowed. "I suppose --_wait_." He grabbed his computer and immediately ran his forefinger around the mouse pad, seeking out another picture. A few moments later he grinned and turned it back around for her to see. She gasped again as her eyes met the image of her, Serena, and Ami chatting away with Ms. Haruna in the middle of the food court. "This is the original photo that I zoomed in on." He explained unnecessarily, "When I told Robert about how I was looking for you, he said you sounded vaguely familiar. He went through his photos and eventually came across this. He asked Sakura who you were, making up some story about how he likes remembering everyone in his pictures or something, and she told him."

Her eyes traced the screen a few more times before a wide, giddy grin broke out. "_No way!_ Wait until I tell Serena and Ami… about… this.…" Her expression abruptly faded and her head dropped down to the table. "Damn it. What am I going to do? I'm--" Bang head against table. "--stuck--" Bang again. "--in--" Bang. "--Norway." She sighed as, instead of her head hitting the table, she hit warm flesh. She looked up, her forehead a fierce red color. "_What?_"

Thor tried to smile reassuringly as he withdrew his hand. "I already told you I'm here to help. I'll fly you back to Japan."

She frowned, straightening back up. "I'm not a charity case."

A tick began to form in his cheek. He knew she would be stubborn like this. "I know you're not. Can't you just accept that I want to help you?" She stayed stone silent, making him irritably rub his forehead. "Will you at least accept some money to call Artemis? That's it. A few dollars at the most." He looked back up at her hopefully only to see the most unexpected expression on her face. She was blushing. "Valkyrie…?"

The blush deepened involuntarily; angry with herself, she looked up and met her former father square in the eye. "I don't know how, exactly, to contact Artemis." She looked away. There, she'd said it. She didn't have a clue what the number for the man's private line was, let alone what the regular academy-headquarters-whatever-you-wanted-to-call-it's number was.

He blinked. "You don't know…?" He shook his head. "Then why was one of your plans to contact him? If you don't know any of the phone numbers, then that wasn't a very smart plan." He immediately winced as she surged to her feet, slamming her hands against the table.

"_This _is why I don't want your help." She hissed as she leaned down in his face, "You criticize me at every turn and I don't _need _that crap right now." She paused, shaking her head. "But, you know what? Why don't you go ahead and say whatever the hell you want because _I._ _Don't. Want. Your. Help_." She laughed mirthlessly. "Knowing you, you'd just turn right around and expect some kind of payment out of me the second the plane lands anyways."

He squeezed his eyes shut, feeling the dull ache behind his eyes form into a constant throb. "No. I wouldn't. I just want you to be with your family again. No strings attached."

"_Bullshit."_

He opened his eyes at the hiss, a weak smile on his face. "I like that game. I even have cards, would you care to play?" He flinched as her expression darkened before a scowl abruptly formed of his face. Who was he to be afraid of Valkyrie? So what if she still had Senshi powers? He had… nothing. He grimaced; yeah, she could do some real damage --that evidenced by the pounding he'd received not long ago-- but that didn't mean she would _seriously_ harm him. Definitely not kill him, right? "I'm sorry." He sighed. "I _am_ genuine, promise. As soon as I know you're back in Japan with your family, you'll never have to see me or hear from me ever again. I swear it."

"Why?" He looked up to see she was still angry, but the confusion swimming in her eyes overpowered the emotion. "After all this time," She continued in a whisper, "all the things you could have done for me when I actually _was_ your daughter, why _now_?"

He gave her a little, sad smile. "Because I was a horrible father and I want to make it up to all my children. Reuniting you with your family is the only thing I know you would even _remotely_ accept. Other than that…" He sighed, shaking his head. "I have nothing, Valkyrie. Nothing but what I'm offering."

"I just wanted to know that my father accepted me. That's the only thing I _ever_ wanted from you." His head snapped up in surprise but she was already walking out, a cold chill slicing through the room before she slammed the door shut behind her.

He groaned, slumping against the table. "But I did. I accepted, wanted, _loved _you and all my other children." A humorless chuckle bubbled out of his throat. "Too bad you'll never believe me. No matter what I try to do to convince you."

* * *

"Any of these bunks taken?"

Valkyrie scowled, not bothering to look over at the voice. She would never understand this "Howard Wilkins"; he was too different from the man that used to be her father. Thor would have probably grunted a greeting and plopped right down on the bed, uncaring if it was claimed or not. "Why?"

The redhead glanced at her but she was staring up at the bunk above her. "Well, it's only right to ask. I don't want to displace anyone." He looked around, taking in how most of the others were a good distance away and looking in their --or rather, _Valkyrie's_-- direction warily. "But I see Mrs. Sørensen was right and you're making everyone nervous, so I'm positive they're available." He eyed her, trying to get a reaction, but she continued to stare upwards listlessly. "You know, I have a feeling that if this wasn't a free youth hostel, you might have scared everyone away."

"There are plenty of other beds." She offered, "Go find one of them if I scare you so much."

"Nah. You don't scare me." He pointedly dropped his backpack on the bottom bunk next to the one she was lying in. "Besides, it's getting late, I'm tired, and this bed looks like heaven on earth." He chuckled. "Plus, those painkillers are starting to wear off already and I don't think I'll make it even a few more steps." As if to prove his words, something popped as he sat down next to the backpack and he groaned in pain.

A smile involuntarily formed on her lips. "Shoulda just left me alone, then."

"Yeah. Probably." He agreed easily, "Unfortunately for you, I'm determined. You're stuck with me until you accept my help and are back in Tokyo." He sighed as she glared at him from the corner of her eye. "Why are you so pigheaded? We were just fine--"

"_Pigheaded!?"_

"We were just _fine_," He repeated with his own glare, "until your pride had to get in the way. You _know _you want to be back in Tokyo with everyone, so what is it going to take for me to get you to accept my help? What? Do you want to kick my ass again, well fine! Go right ahead!" He gazed at her steely for a moment for wincing. "Wait. If you do, could you give me a few days first? I'm not as tough as I used to be."

She smirked. "What if that was what I wanted? To kick your ass when you're already down?"

He nodded, hoping his arms invitingly. "Okay. You just have to promise that you'll accept my help as soon as I can walk straight again." He swallowed as her smirk widened and she stood up, a barely perceptible swirl of lightning beginning to form in her right hand. '_This is for a good cause._' He told to himself as she walked the few short paces to him. '_I want to do this. I want to do this._' He flinched as he felt the air crackle with energy as her hand drew closer.

She glared at the man, taking in tightly squeezed shut eyes and tense posture, before calmly flicking him in the forehead. To her amazement, he fell down on the bed like a rock. "_Wow_." She laughed. "You really are pathetic, aren't you?"

He peeked open one eye, then the other. "That's it?" He rubbed his forehead, the area still tingling from where she'd shocked him with her flick, and stared at her in disbelief as he pushed himself up on his elbows. "You have an opportunity to kick my ass again and you let it _go_?" He narrowed his eyes. "Maybe you _aren't_ Valkyrie after all."

"Wouldn't be a hell of a surprise if I _wasn't_ with everything that's going on." She muttered to herself irritably before shaking her head. "Even if you called Artemis for me, it wouldn't do any real good. I need documents to leave the country." She rose an eyebrow. "I'm not letting you smuggle me out."

He blinked. "Does this mean you're accepting my help?"

She smirked, tilting her head to the side. "I want you out of my sight as fast as possible." He winced, but she continued on uncaringly. "And, on the plus side, that means I'll see my family and friends just as fast. I'm giving you a _week_ to _legally_ get me out of this country, Thor, and if you don't--" She narrowed her eyes fiercely. "--I'm going to throw your sorry ass into the North Sea. Which I would like to remind you is about five-degrees Celsius right now. You'd survive for about… hmm, an hour if you're lucky?"

He grinned, completely unfazed by her threat. "You _are_ Valkyrie! And I accept!" He immediately sat up and pulled his laptop out of his backpack to boot it up. He paused after a bit, looking up at his daughter. "Thank you. You have no idea how happy this makes me."

She looked away from his grateful eyes, crossing her arms across her chest. "I didn't do it for you. I'm not just a bastard, I'm a _selfish_ bastard. I miss everyone. Besides, I refuse to allow them to think I'm dead for a second longer." She snorted. "They seem to have forgotten I'm made of tougher stuff than that."

He gazed at her thoughtfully before nodding slowly. "Yes. You are." He shook his head as he went back to his computer to find the appropriate numbers to contact Artemis.

* * *

"Well, do you know _where _he is then?"

"_Sorry, sir. Mr. Lunvaire has been unreachable for almost a day."_

Thor scowled, fighting the urge to throw the black cell phone that he was holding against his ear. It wasn't _its _fault --it was Artemis's for, apparently, disappearing off the face of the planet! "You're telling me that you don't know where your _Commander_ is?"

"_I'm afraid so. Yesterday at breakfast, he only said he had urgent business to attend. Somewhere out of the country and that he didn't know when he'd been back. None of us thought anything of it; he usually disappears when it involves a tough recruit."_

He hissed through his teeth. "Did he mention either Tokyo or Japan before leaving?"

_A pause. "No. Not from what I can remember; I was trying to get my girlfriend's attention, though."_ He rolled his eyes; where did Artemis find _this_ one? And why was he manning the phone, anyways? Shouldn't an instructor be doing that? _"…Commander might have told Doctor Morris where he was going, if that helps?"_

He sat up straighter. Finally, something useful! "_Aidan _Morris?" He asked carefully, receiving a positive on the other side. "He was left in charge, right?" Another positive. "Can I speak to _him_, then?"

"_Sorry, the doc's on the mainland helping with a surgery. He left explicit instructions that he can't be bothered until it's over. Well, unless, like someone's dying or something…"_

Thor pulled the phone away from his ear for a minute, breathing heavily. This was getting _nowhere_! "Okay, then. When he _is _available, could you please tell him that King Thor needs to speak with him. And that it's an emergency?"

"_K-k-king Th-Thor?"_

He smirked victoriously; he should have thrown around his name in the first place. "Yes. So, the second he steps onto the property, you will tell the doctor he needs to call me back, right? It's very important. My cell phone number should be filed away somewhere under the name Howard Wilkins. If not, I know it's in your Commander's office under Thor."

"_O-of course, sir. It--it was an honor--"_

Irritably, the red-haired man snapped the phone closed, effectively ending the call before he had to listen to any of the flowery speeches or compliments. "Holy Valhalla."

"Hmm. So no Commander, eh?" His attention snapped over to the woman spread out on her claimed bed, smirking at him. "Tick tock, tick tock, Thor. What's your next plan of action?"

He grimaced at Valkyrie's smugness; she was eager to throw him into the sea, he just knew it. He looked down at his phone before pausing as a thought occurred to him. '_Wait a minute…_' He thrust it into her direction. "Here. My next plan of action. Call your parents."

She glared as she swung herself up. "Nu-uh. I am _not _calling them."

He rose an eyebrow. "Why? They're lawyers. I _know _they have to have a copy of all your important documents somewhere. It's just the kind of thing they'd do." His eyes narrowed as she stayed silent. "What? Do _I _have to call them for you? I may not have Nephrite's phone number but I _do _have theirs."

"You're not calling them _either_." She snapped, "Do I have to remind you that they might have been the ones to tell Neph to go to Tokyo? And if they were, why would they pick _there_? You know, where the _Senshi _are active? They sure as hell don't have a clue about the real me."

He blinked. "Oh. I… hadn't thought of that. It is kinda strange but, it's not like we _really _know if they were the ones to tell him where to look for you. If they _did_, you have to remember Japan _is _on the other side of the world. They could have just picked the furthest place away to say that's where you went."

She scowled. "They're not an option, Thor, and that's not negotiable."

He smiled wryly. "I can see the lawyer quality your parents must have seen in you." His amusement faltered as her gaze darkened. "_Uh_…"

"You seem to know _everything _about me." She hissed, "My name. Who my family is. Where I've been the last few months. Probably everything about my life in New York, too. If you can find all that out, you sure as hell can find a way to get me out of this country _without _my parents involvement."

He grimaced. She didn't realize how much time and effort went into gathering all that information. Not to mention all the favors he had to collect along the way. "I suppose, but…" He cut himself off, his gaze narrowing in determination. "No. You're right. I _will _get you out of this country and back to Tokyo." He glanced at her as she snorted and laid back down on her bed, her expression closed off once again.

With one look, it was easy to see that she was absolutely miserable and had been for some time. She was alone, in a country where the only familiarity was its roots of Jovian ancestry. She'd been stripped away from her daughter, husband, and the life she knew only to involuntarily live a lie for months. She'd been given a hint of being with her friends again only to be stripped away by a storm of her own making…

She was _his daughter_, and no matter what she thought or how much she took her misery out on him, he cared about her too damn much to let her continue to suffer like this. He _would _get her back to Japan and reunite her with the people she cared most about.

He had to.

* * *

"We have a problem." Zoisite announced in a low voice as he rooted through the 'M' files a few rows over from where his companion was looking through the 'S' and 'T's.

Nephrite scowled as he shined his pinpoint flashlight in the other man's direction. "What kind of problem?"

The brunette glared as the light hit him square in the eyes, making him hiss and look away. "Get that out of my face!" Nephrite smirked but did as requested. Zoisite blinked a few times to make the dots he saw go away before turning back. "Ami's record isn't here. There's no Mizunos at all, as a matter of fact."

The American frowned in worry. "None _at all_?"

"No. Not a one." Zoisite eased the metal file closed, silently giving anyone he could think of a mental 'Thank you!' as it didn't squeal again like it had when he'd first opened it. His relief was short-lived, however, as a shrill scrapping sound echoed from Nephrite's direction and the man released a vicious curse. The next thing he knew, he was being pulled around the corner and waiting with abated breath. Luckily, no one seemed to notice the obnoxiously suspicious sound of the drawer closing, and both men simultaneously relaxed a few minutes later. "Idiot!" The Frenchman snapped, hitting his friend in the arm, "Give me some warning next time will you? I about had a heart attack!"

Nephrite smiled sheepishly before drawing the other man's attention to his hands as he looked down. Neatly organized files, labeled _Tsukino Serena _and _Shields Darien _respectively, stared back at them. "At least we knew for a fact that these two were here." The mahogany-haired man frowned. "But, what about Ami's? I know once Jed finds the pattern the poison causes, he'll be able to find it in all the samples with no problem, but shouldn't we still have it in case?"

"We should." '_Because I want to know if she's been hospitalized for anything serious._' Zoisite added mentally before reaching into his pocket for the walkie-talkie that had been utterly silent the whole time they'd been sneaking around in the basement. "Come in, Cadeyrn." He whispered, "Everything still clear out there? Over."

There was a click that signified the Solarian had pressed the button to talk but all they heard was heavy breathing. Both generals shared a worried look before their attention snapped back to the device as an answer rang out. "Clear… if… you… don't," Motoki panted, "count the fact I just ran the entire perimeter of the parking lot." He paused, taking a few more gasps of breaths. "_God_. Something, a rat or something, fell on my shoulder and I screamed bloody murder! Thought it was the guard I'd lost sight of. Turned out I only captured his attention and he chased me on that forsaken golf cart of his he'd been getting! Over."

Both the men on the other side of the talkie bit their lips, fighting back their laughter until their eyes began to water. "You're new to this, aren't you?" Nephrite couldn't help but chuckle. "You should have followed Jed's suggestion of doing the drunken little teapot dance. Over."

"Ha, ha." Motoki replied dryly, rolling his eyes. "Your concern is touching guys, really. Over."

Nephrite snorted on a laugh and was about to respond when the talkie was yanked out of his hands. "Where are you now, Cadeyrn?" Zoisite questioned, "Do you have a good vantage point? Over."

"Yeah. I'm hiding by some of the cars in the doctors' parking lot. Everything looks relatively calm again; the night guard's still looking for me on the other side. Over."

"Good. Stay there unless he comes around." The brunette paused. "Did he get a good look at you? Over."

"Nah. He was too far away but I took off my white sweater and stashed it in a few bushes, just in case. You guys done? Over."

"Smart thinking." Zoisite breathed a sigh of relief. "And, yeah, we're done." His eyes fell to the two folders. "But we have a small problem. There's no record of Ami Mizuno here. Over."

There was a pause before Motoki spoke again. "Well, I guess that makes sense. Her mom's a doctor over at Tokyo General and even if that patient-doctor interest thing won't let her daughter _be _her patient, she'd probably like her to be close by. Over."

The Frenchman's mouth dropped open, whether in outrage or shock Nephrite didn't want to know, so he grabbed the talkie back. "_Really _should have told us that earlier, Cadeyrn." He mumbled, "'cause now Zoi's turning this red color… Over."

"Sorry. I honestly didn't think of it earlier." The other man uttered sheepishly, "I suppose this means you two won't do me a favor and look to see if my sister's been a patient, huh? Over."

Zoisite scowled darkly in the direction of the talkie but still turned on his heel and stomped back to where he and Nephrite had just been. "Surprise, surprise." The mahogany-haired general mused, "Zoi's going to look." He looked back down at the talkie, grinning wickedly. "…_So_, did you have fun running for your life? You know, the teapot dance would have saved you a lot of effort. And the best part is that the security cameras would have caught it for us! Over."

Motoki groaned. "Are you always like this on a mission? Even with Endymion and Kunzite? Over."

Nephrite scoffed. "I _wish_. It'd make things a hell of a lot more fun. But Kunz would have my head and Endymion, well, he's kind of harder to predict. Either he'd laugh right along or I'd get my ass kicked not long after. But Kunz? No way, no how." He paused suddenly. "…Does this have something to do with that fact you keep saying you'll never join us on a mission again? Over."

"No comment." Motoki smirked. "Over."

"Aw, come on. You know this is the most fun you've had on a mission in years! Over."

The blonde snorted in disbelief. "Because it's been ten-thousand years since I last had a real mission, moron. The things are headquarters don't count. Over."

"Yeah." The American agreed with an unseen nod, "Some of them were more like day-camping. Hey, Zoi's coming back." He lifted his finger from the talk button and turned to the man questioningly, only to receive a negative and the talkie jerked out of his hands again.

"No, Cadeyrn." Zoisite replied, "There's no file for either Wilhelmina Rogers or Minako Aino. Over."

Motoki sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I suppose it had been too much to hope for. Thanks for looking anyways. Now what? Over."

"Now Nephrite is going back to the hotel with the files we _do _have and you and I are going over to Tokyo General. Over."

"B-but, you don't have floor plans or anything!" The Solarian protested, "You'd be going in there completely blind! Over."

"Not _me_." Zoisite smirked viciously. "_You_. I'll stay outside and be your lookout while you find the file you should have told us was in that hospital a _week _ago. Over and out." He quickly turned off the volume before the man had a chance to retort and shoved it back in his pocket.

Nephrite eyed his companion. "That is completely a move Kunz would have pulled. What happened, I thought Albreda was mellowing you back out?"

"She is." The former-blonde replied with a shrug. "We just don't need a forgetful man to screw up our planning. When Cadeyrn doesn't get into bed by five a.m., he'll be extra careful to tell us every single detail next time."

"Riiight," Nephrite coughed "_Kunzite_" and began running down the halls as swiftly as he could as Zoisite scowled darkly and tried to hit him in the head. He snickered to himself the whole way. '_Best time I've had in ages. Too bad Jed's missing all the fun…_'

* * *

"Hmm. Add a little of this _and_…" Jadeite leaned backwards with a grin and silently count down from ten. He only got to five before a 'poof!' and a cloud of orange smoke erupted out of his test tube. He cackled like a little kid with a sugar high as he waved the smoke toward the open window. He should have thought to invest in a chemistry set _ages _ago!

'_An adult set, that is._' He scowled at the thought of how little faith his friends had in him. He was being responsible, wasn't he? He'd set up near an open window so any and all smoke he caused didn't set off the smoke detectors and, consequently, the fire sprinklers. He was wearing gloves, goggles, and the whole she-bang. He was treating the plastic test tubes like they were made of glass and making sure all the containers on the chemicals were tightly sealed after using them. He'd even finished the testing for the blood samples hours ago --_two _in fact!-- before he began playing around while waiting for them to get back with the files.

"I am completely responsible enough for an adult set." He muttered to himself irritably as he moved on to his next experiment. "I haven't caused a fire, have I?" He grinned as he poured half the powdery substance into a fresh beaker, eyeing it to make sure it was the appropriate dosage.

"I got an B in chemistry, did they even think of that!?" He asked rhetorically a few moments later, his grin turning into a smirk as he thought back to his schooling. He may hate studying but, Chemistry 101, now _that _was a good class. You practically got graded on how well you managed to blow things up! "And I love the blowing up part…" He mused, "And lets not forget the fact my lab partner was the lovely Chelsea."

Hey, so sue him, all right? He'd been fourteen, and she was a very …_mature _fifteen year old with a head of beautiful blonde hair and the cutest dimples. And, in his defense, it had been _before _he remembered Rei --he'd never looked at another woman the same way again!

"I wonder whatever happened to Chelsea?" He wondered out loud, "Last time I saw her-- _holy shit_!" He jumped out of his chair, letting it hit the floor with a loud bang, and gawked at the frothy and rather menacing looking purple goo bubbling out of his beaker. He continued to stare in a kind of horrified awe for a few more minutes until the beaker cracked under the strain and he had to duck to avoid a glass shard. He instantly grabbed the fire extinguisher he'd placed next to the desk, fumbling with the pin a few times before managing to get it out, and wasted no time in picking up the hose and blasting the desk.

It was a battle of wiles but, fortunately, a few minutes later he managed to overcome the goo and stop its spread. The extinguisher dropped out of his slack hands as he eyed the white foam that covered what used to be the hotel desk. "Holy crap…" He mumbled, shaking his head, "You did it to me again, Chelsea."

The last time he'd seen her, she had been wearing a low-cut red blouse --'_I swear it was red that drew my attention! It is Bellona's signature color after all, I was subconsciously drawn to it! It's not my fault her breasts were in the same vicinity!_'-- and she'd been leaning over the textbook in concentration. He, in the meantime, had been …drawn by the red color and staring at her while simultaneously pouring a chemical he shouldn't have been into the beaker they were working with.

Long story short, he'd never seen her again after she'd screamed at him for twenty minutes about the green --'_I thought it'd looked rather nice; you didn't see me complaining._'-- tint her hair had turned, his parents had been forced to pay for two lab stations (which he was still _repeatedly _reminded of had been extra expensive because they'd just been installed a few months prior) and a science explosion that required evacuation was now called a "Code Jade" --a pun on his namesake and the color of the slime that'd covered everyone-- back at HQ.

"Good times, good times." He chuckled as he picked up the fire extinguisher and replaced a pin. His amusement quickly faded as he looked back up at the mess and something very important occurred to him. "Crap. This is _Zoi's _room. Which means…" He groaned, grimacing. "Aw, man! He's going to kill me _and _wipe out my bank account all at once. _Craaap_."

He scowled after a minute. Clearly this was all Chelsea's fault.

* * *

"Hey, you want to play a game?"

The brunette grinded her teeth together. "No."

"You _suuuure_?" Thor asked he propped himself up on one elbow and watched his former-daughter knowingly. '_Any second now…_'

"For Valhalla's sake!" She snapped as she sat up and turned to glare at his grinning form. Neither of them paid any mind to the tourists that started at her exclamation before slowly turning back to their own business. "For the hundredth time, I don't want to play poker, bullshit, go-fish, or anything else with you!"

He chuckled. She was so easy to rile up and he was having way too much fun with it… "No. No card games. A get to know you game. I tell you a little about my life and then you do the same." She scowled and his grin widened. "Come on. It'll be great. We can catch each other up on our lives."

"I've already told you _more _than enough about me." She retorted as she flopped back down on her back, "And who said I wanted to know anything about _your _life?"

"Yes, then?" He smiled as she glared at him. "Okay. I'll go first. Hmm… Where to start? Well, I guess the beginning would be a good place." He chuckled briefly. "My name's Howard Wilkins, like I told you earlier, and I'm thirty-seven. I was born on July twenty-fifth in Copenhagen, Denmark --I apparently couldn't stay away from _any _land of our forefathers." He added with a laugh. "I have one brother, Robert, and a younger sister named Julie. I'm the middle child." He paused, his brow knitting together. "Let's see, I was married for nine years and I've been divorced for three. I'm still friends with my ex-wife, though." He glanced over at her to see her staring out of the corner of her eye; apparently she didn't believe him. "It's true. We're genuinely friends. We even vacationed together last winter in New Zealand." He shook his head. "But I won't get into that now. We had one child. A son named Timothy." A secretive grin light up his expression suddenly. "You'd love him. He's the sweetest ten year old you will ever met."

She snorted, folding her arms under her head, but didn't say anything or discourage him from continuing, so he did. "Well, the early chapters of my life were spent in Copenhagen and it was pretty typical. My father was a fisherman and my mother a homemaker. As for myself, I didn't excel at anything in particular. Not school or sports or anything else but I did okay overall. I went to college for a year before deciding that that wasn't what I wanted to do with my life and dropped out." He paused, glancing over at her again, only to see her eyes flickering away quickly. He smiled, continuing on more readily. "I wasn't exactly sure what I wanted to do with my life, though, so I spent a few years traveling. Went everywhere I'd ever wanted to go so long as I could find work to get me there. The Americas, China, Australia, then all the typical travel places in Europe. Paris, London, Italy, etcetera. Then one day I realized something that changed my life."

She blinked as he abruptly stopped and she turned to him only to find him watching her expectantly. "Realized what?"

He grinned. "Sorry. That's the end of my turn. It's yours now." He paused. "Or would you like me to give your answers, since you think I know you so well?" He shrugged carelessly as she glowered. "Fine, I will. Feel free to jump in anytime and correct me, of course." He added before frowning pensively. "From what I managed to gather, you were born Valerie Edwards on December fifth in New York City, New York. You're turning twenty-one in a week, as you told me earlier. You're an only child and lived a privileged life in Manhattan. Went to private schools your whole life and even graduated a year early. You lived in a high-rise penthouse with your parents, Kathryn and Oliver Edwards, and your maternal grandmother Rose." He paused to study her but she was only staring at him blankly. He sighed and shifted his attention to the bed above him. "Just forget it. I don't even know why I bothered to try to get to know you. I'll be out of her life the moment you sent foot on Japanese soil, just like I told you I was willing to do."

She continued to look at him blankly for another moment, feeling an unwelcome emotion well up inside her. She shouldn't feel guilty --_he _still hadn't apologize for criticizing her, had he? Let alone for almost shooting her so long ago!-- but she _did_. She stifled her own sigh. '_Damn my bleeding heart…_' "I didn't graduate from high school early because of academic achievement or even because I wanted to. My parents said I had to get a head start on my career and that meant getting to college as early as possible. Especially since my grades had only been decent." She moved her attention away from him as he looked over. "I began taking classes at a community college in addition to regular schooling as soon as I was sixteen and permitted to. I had regular classes, all my after school commitments, then college classes on top of it all …I only lasted a semester, barely. My grandma Rose told my parents that I was being spread too thin and that I was on the verge of a breakdown because they were expecting way too much out of me." She smiled gently. "Somehow she managed to do the impossible and get them to lay off of me for a while. Even convinced them that taking up my tae kwon do classes, which they'd made me stop around that time, would help keep me together. She just knew I really missed the class…"

Thor's eyes softened at the fondness in her voice. It was no wonder she'd named her daughter after such a lady. "I didn't know she practically raised you." He offered, "I had hoped…" He shook his head. '_Hoped that your parents paid more attention to you than I did…_'

She glanced at him before nodding and facing the bed above her again. "What did you realize that changed your life?"

"Hmm? Oh!" He nodded to himself. "One day, while I was working on a ship that was taking me from Morocco to Spain, I just stopped and realized that I _knew _the captain. I'd never seen him before in my life, barely even spoke to him besides getting my next chores, but I could clearly remember myself telling him that he was a shame to all giants on Jupiter." He laughed as she turned to him in surprise. "I thought I was going crazy so I shook it off, you know? But that night, when I was bone-tired and half-passed out, all I could still think about was that memory. I'd been freaked out by how much I _meant _what I said --like there was really giants on Jupiter. So the next morning, I did the only thing I could even _think _to do. I walked right up to the captain and told him he was still a shame to all giants on Jupiter."

She looked at him with wide eyes before chuckling. "You didn't."

He nodded, a wry smile on his face. "I was a thickheaded twenty-two year old, of course I did. And you know what his response was? '_I may be a shame to giants but at least I can still stand a chance against a Thebean(4) dwarf unlike the scrawny thing you've become_'."

Her mouth dropped open before she burst out into laughter. "It was Loki(5), wasn't it?"

"Oh, yeah." He chuckled. "It was him alright. 'course the idiot thought I actually _remembered _him and had been messing with his head by pretending to be a docile, yes-man. It didn't take long for him to realize--" He chuckled as she shot him a disbelievingly look. "Okay, it took him almost a week to realize that I didn't remember him and had just been going along with whatever he said because I was so confused. Almost instantly he pointed me in the direction of the Artemis's school. And the rest, they say, is history with that." He shrugged. "Artemis helped me remember and smooth out all my memories of the Silver Millennium and once I did, I immediately began looking for my children. _All _of them, in no order." He added fiercely as he saw the beginnings of a stormy expression on her face. "I didn't go looking for your sister first, so don't you dare accuse me of favoritism like you always have."

"I wasn't going to say anything about …_her_." Her lips turned up in disgust. By Valhalla, she hated that woman. Conniving, evil, half-Giant _bitch_ --that's what Thrúd was.

Thor sighed. "Fine. It's your turn now."

Still infuriated at the thought of her sister, she sent him with a sharp glare. "You already _said _everything. You conducted a full out _invasion _on my private life, if you want anything else go gather your contacts and have them tell you. I'm not offering you another thing."

"Unlike what you seem to think," He began, growing angry himself at her unwillingness to stay even _remotely _friendly, "I _can't _write the Valerie Davis life story. I don't know what your favorite classes in school were. Or who your friends are. I don't even know how you met Nephrite again. I can only give a half-assed guess to what your favorite color is and that's only because you're," He leaned down, hissing, "_Sailor Jupiter _and _her _color is green. I don't know what you do for fun, and I don't mean your academic sports or your tae kwon do or _whatever_. _Real _fun; do you hang out with your friends at the mall? Or do you like going to the movies? Did your parents even _give _you free time? I don't know any of those things, and a hell of a lot more stuff too. But you want to know what I _did _learn during my so-called invasion?" He scowled as she glared. "I learned that you were pushed for things you didn't want your entire life. You were probably expected to go to Yale or Harvard or some other Ivy-League school like all the other rich snobs that revolved around your life in the upper-class society. Your parents are top-dollar lawyers who had _all _the right connections to get you to where they wanted you to go and they were more then eager to do it. Your whole life you'd been set out for you and you'd almost let them get away with it because you didn't stand up for yourself and what _you _wanted. You let them intimidate you _continuously._ And the reason why you don't want to call them now, why you didn't beg and _plead _for spare change or to use one of these youth hostel's phones in the _weeks _you've been here, is because you're _afraid _to. Because when your mother was running for District Attorney in a highly publicized event, you-- an …incident occurred." He stopped, all the fire draining out of him. What was he even _doing_? This wasn't the way to get her to be nice; if anything it'd only make her pissed off… He winced as she began to laugh bitterly.

"Yeah. An _incident_." She sneered. "The family image and platform she was running got shot to pieces when me, their seventeen year old daughter, got _pregnant_. Mom was so horrified and ashamed that she dropped out of the running and I've hardly talked to my parents since." She swung herself up. "So what if I don't want to call them? Do you really expect them to be _willing _to do anything to help me now? After I practically ruined precious social standing?"

"Valkyrie…" He began gently.

She instantly shot to her feet. "No, just… _no_. This game is officially over. You learned I was a rich brat that hated her life and all that my parents expected me to be and I learned _you _were a traveling bum chasing down people who don't _want _you around and never have. Just… just leave me the _fuck _alone and get me out of this country so I never have to speak to you again, got it? I don't want to even _look _at you again."

He winced again. Ouch. That had actually _hurt_. "I didn't mean--"

She snorted, grabbing the stained and tearing net-backpack --her own possession besides the clothes on her back-- and hoisted it up on a shoulder. "You _never _mean it, Thor. You didn't mean it when you implied I was vicious enough to _want _to destroy my parents' lives. You didn't _mean _to forget and leave my six-year old self stranded on Europa(3) in the middle of a _civil war _while you went back home with Thrúd. You didn't _mean _to almost shoot me with an arrow, let alone the time you decided to teach me how to handle a sword and proceeded to wound me so badly I almost _died _of blood loss."

He opened his mouth feebly but couldn't find any words to make anything better. He was a screw up, he didn't deny, but why did she have to pick out his _worst _mistakes? "…Valkyrie… I--I'm not like _that _anymore. I'm not just King Thor, I'm--"

"Yeah, yeah. Howard Wilkins." She scoffed. "Trust me, that's not enough because deep down inside your still the great King Thor, the man who was so _fantastic _that our Jovian descendants in this part of the world just _had _to idolize you as a god. …You never mean _anything_, so why don't you save us both a lot of trouble and just forget about me? I'll find my own way back to Japan. Without you _or _my parents' help."

He watched her storm off for a few seconds before instantly scrambling to gather his belongings to follow her outside. He was up and off the bed, his jacket back on and his backpack on his shoulders, when he looked up to see Mrs. Sørensen appearing in the doorway that Valkyrie was just about to go through. The blonde was soaked from head to toe and he could see her shivering from where he was halfway around the room, but she still stopped and said something to his former daughter, making a few gestures outside, before closing the door behind her and locking it.

Valkyrie instantly began yelling --in _fluid _Jovian, but by the way she was still ranting she probably didn't notice-- and waving her hand around before she just _stopped_. Literally one second she was gesturing to the door erratically and the next her whole body froze and she slowly turned to look out the window. Seconds later he understood why as a earsplitting crack broke the silence of the large room and a flash of lightning lit up everything before thunder boomed over their heads so hard it seemed to shake the building.

He _really _wanted to laugh in irony but was too worried about his daughter's reaction to even crack the briefest smile. She stared at the window unmoving for a few moments before her whole posture slumped and she mumbled a few words that might have been an apology in Mrs. Sørensen's general direction. The older woman looked somewhat shaken but she offered a wane smiled and nodded, and the instant she did, Valkyrie stomped over to the bed closest to the doorway and peeled off her backpack before throwing herself down on the bottom bunk.

He sat back down on his bed slowly, watching her. After a minute, as another earsplitting bolt of lightning cracked the air, he grimaced. Things weren't going as he'd planned, not even close to it, and this was just the _first day_. He still couldn't get a hold of Dr. Aidan and was practically grasping at straws for anyone else to help. If she didn't want to _legally _get out the country, he would probably have her smuggled across the border already, but she wanted everything to be legit and unfortunately there was no telling how long it would take for that to happen…

'_How are we supposed to survive together until we reach Japan? …How am __**I **__supposed to survive?'_ He sighed as he slowly pulled his backpack back off. '_Damn it, Artemis. Where are you?_'

* * *

A white-haired man silently bopped his head to the music streaming out of his headphones. He took a second to muse the usefulness of the little red device in his hand; mp3 players, they really were the wonder of this latest century. He knew he sure appreciated the distraction they caused him. Airplane trips always were so boring. '_Now if only Jadeite had a better, more refined taste in music…_' His grimace turned into a grin; that reminded him, he'd have to thank Jadeite for leaving it lying around carelessly in his room. It made it all the easier to find.

His eyes slid up from the mp3 player to absently take in his setting. Slowly, as his blue eyes took in everyone, he realized something was _very_ wrong. The boy next to him --the source of his irritation that caused him to put in the headphones, truthfully-- had his mouth stuck open, no doubt wanting to yell. _Again_. His mother's grimace was fixed on her face, a hand suspended toward the purse in her lap. A stewardess in the aisle was frozen in the process of pouring water into someone's glass.

He frowned in concern as he pulled the white earbuds out of his ears. "What in Terra?" He whispered to no one in particular as he stood up slowly and looked around every which way. Everyone was frozen in some state of action or another; he was the only one _moving_.

No… there was someone else moving too. His mouth dropped open as he saw Sailor Pluto striding down the aisle from first class. "I have already warned you that you must prepare faster," She stated calmly before sweeping a hand to encompass the cabin, "Yet I find you here. Wasting time headed in the wrong direction."

His frown deepened. "I _am_ preparing. I have to tell Valkyrie's parents--"

She held up that same sweeping hand, stopping him. "No. They are irrelevant. You are supposed to be preparing for King Endymion. For Queen Serenity. For _Japan_. There is no point in you gallivanting off to America to tell a woman's parents of her death." Her eyes narrowed slightly. "If you were half as observant as you should be, you would have already noticed what another already has."

"And what is _that _supposed to mean?" He burst out, instantly angry at the slight against him. "You sure won't tell me a damn thing useful! That, or you won't _finish _telling me ---and just wait one minute!" He paused to look at all the immobile people before shifting a suspicious glare back to the Senshi. "What happened to those taboos? You know, the ones that are supposed to be in place that dictate what you can and cannot do?"

She smirked slightly. "I must not travel through time. Nor abandon my post at the Space-Time Door. Nor ever cause time to stop for any reason. If I do stop time, my life is automatically forfeited."

"Yeah." His eyes narrowed as he twirled a finger around in the air. "So why isn't your life being forfeited?"

Her smirk widened. "A legend, much like a rumor, only starts with a grain of truth. No taboos can hold back my power. I do not oversee time, I _am _Time."

He took an uneasy step back, his eyes wide with an alarmed surprise. "Wh-what…?"

"You are not hard of hearing." She canceled out the step he'd taken back by taking one closer to him. "Did your silly books not tell you what I am truly capable of? I am not the most powerful being to ever grace this universe but I _am _one of them. I am no mere pawn, mortal." She leaned toward him. "And you know what else? I am not simply Time, I have the blood of Death in my veins. Do you know what that means?"

Artemis shook his head wordlessly, his mind frantically grasping for his memories of those "silly books" he'd read so long ago in the Lunarian Palace library. They'd been a set of five, detailing the legend that was the Sailor Senshi. Books that had told him that there was a Senshi potential for every planet, as well as Lunaria and Sol. Books that had told him that two Senshi, those from Neptune and Uranus, were forever guarding and defending the universe from outsiders. Books that had told him there was a fabled Senshi also eternally guarding Time, overseeing all but never allowed to walk among them. Yet based on the fact that youma had been in this universe for _millenniums_, coupled with the fact that a certain Senshi was now standing _in front _of him and had _stopped _time, apparently the books had been wrong about a lot of things. He could help but wonder what else they might have been wrong about…

He gasped, being violently pulled out of his thoughts, as the top of the woman's staff was pushed against his chest roughly.

"It means that I can sometimes know when someone …_significant _dies. I have warned you to prepare faster because I have felt Death crawl upon my flesh." She looked into his eyes and he flinched at the ancient knowledge in her gaze. "Someone significant is going to die in Tokyo, Artemis," She paused, leaning down to breathe in his ear. "_And it isn't the bad guy…_"

"_Mom_! Are we there _**yet**_!?"

Artemis gasped as his body involuntarily snapped forward, his hands clawing at the armrests absently. He looked around anxiously only to see everything the same way it was before time had stopped. The little boy next to him was still being obnoxious, his mother almost all but outright ignoring him as she pulled a package of aspirin out of her purse, the stewardess was happily moving away from the patron she'd poured water for. '_What… happened?_' He rubbed his chest, trying to sooth the ache. He felt like he'd been pulled out of his body while it'd been forced to take a spin in a washing machine, then he'd slammed back into it with no mercy to feel the aftereffects of the dryer. It was an odd analogy but exactly what he felt like.

"Sir? Sir, are you all right?" He blinked a few times and looked up to see a stewardess, a different one from the beverage-one, leaning toward him worriedly. "Are you ill?"

"No." He shook his head slowly, "I was just… startled, by something."

She eyed him, making it was obvious she didn't believe him in the least, but she nodded and smiled brightly after a moment. "If you're sure… Would you like anything? Beverage, or perhaps a pillow?"

He began shaking his head in the negative before pausing. "Actually, do you happen to know how much longer we have until we get to New York?"

She smiled slightly. "We will be arriving in a little over three hours with good weather."

His brow furrowed. "Good weather?"

"A storm has started unexpectedly off the coast off the Scandinavian Peninsula. We shouldn't affected, nor experience delays, unless it begins to follow our path west."

'_Damn it. I don't need any kinds of delays after that…_' "Oh." He forced himself to be polite, knowing it wasn't her fault. "Thank you very much."

"It was no problem." She smiled even brighter and walked away.

'_Okay, don't panic Artemis._' He told himself as calmly as he could as he looked around again, '_There's no way Pluto was __**really **__here and had just destroyed every belief and upper hand I thought I had on her._' He smiled hopefully. '_Yeah. I mean, nothing's changed. I'm still sitting here; everyone else isn't disoriented in the least. You're getting old, Arty boy, you probably just spaced out. You've been under a lot of stress and just imagined a worst case scenario. …Yeah. That's what happened._' His smile widened as he leaned back in the uncomfortable airplane seat, intent on getting a decent nap in before they reached New York.

"Excuse me, Sir?" He squeezed his eyes shut a few minutes later, stifling a groan in his throat, as someone tapped him on the shoulder. "I don't mean to bother you but your headphones are dragging on the floor." His eyes snapped open as he registered the all too familiar voice. "I do not want you to step on them."

He turned large, stunned eyes to the left to see Sailor Pluto --now dressed in the navy blue uniform all the other stewardess's were wearing, complete with her hair in an elegant bun-- standing beside him. His mouth opened and closed a few times before he managed a shaky: "_P-Pluto…_"

"Forgive me. I don't mean to be so--" Her lips curved into a smile. "--_infuriating_." He blanched; so she _could _hear him that day! "I simply thought I would advise you on the best action to take. I'm afraid that sometimes I allow my job to get the best of me." She calmly leaned down to pull up the headphones he could only distantly remember dropping when he'd stood. "Here you are, sir." He accepted them numbly, staring at her polite expression. "Personally, however," She continued, " I would advise that you continue to rest because I have this most …_peculiar _feeling that a lot of traveling will be in your immediate future." She smiled secretively before walking away without another word.

He watched her go, dumbfounded at what had just happened. _'I don't know… but I think that might have been an apology for scaring the crap out of me for that whole "death in my veins" spiel.'_ The dark-haired woman stopped near the curtained door way that led to first class, exactly in the same place he'd first seen her, and even with the distance and people in the way, he could feel the weight of her ancient gaze bearing down on him. And he could read her message as clear as day: "Someone significant is going to die in Tokyo, Artemis, _and it isn't the bad guy…_"

He shivered, mentally counting how many hours it was going to take to go from New York to Tokyo on the next available flight. Whenever _that _happened to be. _'Too long. __**Way **__too long…'_

* * *

…

_She could see the way his teeth were clenching, the muscles in his exposed skin rippling, that he was having a hard time getting up. Something was wrong… the figure was a mere slip of a person, a seasoned warrior like him should not have such trouble pushing her off. She found her answer as his eyes began to slide closed, rivers of red running down his body to splash on the already violated ground._

_He was dying… He was going to leave her all alone._

_The rest was a blur of thoughts and feelings. Pain, an all-encompassing pain that was not wholly physical, blocked out the rest of her actions. All she knew was the searing feeling in her heart and breast that continued on even as she collapsed. She screamed out the assault of her emotions and through half-lidded eyes saw a bright white light shoot up into the darkened sky._

…

Thousands of miles away from where Artemis was desperately trying to get some sleep and not think about _who _was going to die, a pair of midnight-blue eyes fluttered open and Darien turned to the woman lying on his shoulder in disbelief. Less than a second later, as horror-filled azure eyes snapped open, he had to scramble to cover her mouth to muff her scream. Unfortunately, she immediately took that as a sign to struggle. "_Shh_. Serena, it's all right." He whispered into her ear, "It's just me. Darien."

Slowly, the sleep-induced haze lifted from the blonde's mind and she blinked a few times. "Darfein?" She peeled the hand covering her mouth away and stared in wonder. "You're… you're _okay_. You're not de--" She choked on a sob. "You're not--- you're _alive_." That seemed all she could handle because she instantly broke down and lunged at him, wrapping her arms around his neck for all she was worth.

He enveloped her in a tight hug, one hand running through her loose hair as she cried into his neck. "I'm fine. I'm not going anywhere." He promised into her ear, "It was just a nightmare."

She shook her head wildly, almost completely incoherent mumbles resounding through her gasps. All he could make out were the words "too real" "sword" "woman" and "dying ". His brow furrowed as his mind reeled. Those five little words, if not for her actions, confirmed what he'd been suspecting from the moment she woke up. Somehow, someway, the two of them had dreamt the same thing. '_My apparent death…_'

He squeezed his eyes shut and drew her closer to his body, more shaken than he cared to admit. "I'm okay, Serena. I'm not going to die anytime soon, I swear." Slowly her breathing began to even back out as he continued to run a hand up and down her back. "That… was the something you mentioned at your school, wasn't it?" He asked slowly a few minutes later, "When you said you thought I'd been scared away or _something_ when we didn't see each other for a week." He brow furrowed as she nodded, hot tears soaking into his skin. "You were afraid I'd been killed. Stabbed. Because you'd begun having these nightmares."

She nodded again and took a shaky breath, unable to make the connection of how he knew about her dreams so well with her frazzled mind. He himself was too fixated on that fact she was suffering from these nightmares to even _think _of admitting he'd shared it. "I--I know it's a dream, but it just… feels so _real_." She breathed, making him look at her sadly. "And after awhile I was a--" She sniffled, scrubbing away a few tear tracks, "--afraid that you'd died. Or, or been attacked and--and I had no way of knowing if you were okay. I knew you would--" She hiccupped, "--wouldn't go to the arcade with the Motoki-thing but I didn't think I could go to-- go to your school. I don't know where your classes are or--or anything, either."

His eyes softened as the sheer worry in her voice. "Odango," He said fondly as he lifted up her chin, "you visited Hotaru that week, right?" She nodded, her brow crinkling. "Then why didn't you ask any of the nurses when the last time they saw me was? I was in and out of that hospital, checking up Hotaru and talking with Mrs. Taiko and the others, the whole time practically."

He could instantly see an embarrassed blush stained her cheeks through the moonlight streaming in through her window. "Because I… kind of didn't think of that." She said lowly, releasing a quiet giggle.

He smirked, shaking his head lightly. "Come here, you." He replied as he pulled her closer and wrapped her back in a loose embrace. She giggled even more, neither of them thinking of their current whereabouts, and kissed the tip of his nose before flushing as she realized what she was doing. He chuckled, raising a curious eyebrow. "Does this mean you feel better now?"

Her smile dimmed slightly. "Yeah. I am, but…" She bit her lip, looking up at him with glistening eyes. "I can't shake how _real _it felt. It really feels like you…" She stopped abruptly.

"Hey," He whispered catching her chin again, "If I know when _you're _in trouble, then I have no doubts you'd know when _I _was in trouble too. You have to believe in that link that connects us, okay? I still feel it and I know that means you will too."

"O--" She began to whisper before abruptly yawning. She blinked owlishly, making him chuckle. "--kay."

"Come on, you need to get some rest." He advised as he pulled her head to lay back against his shoulder, "You're going to need it for tomorrow."

"Hmm." She mumbled, nudging herself deeper into his embrace. She yawned again unwittingly. "…What about you?"

He smoothed the hair on top of her head absently. "I'll watch over you. Make sure that nightmare doesn't bother you again."

She cracked an eye open, a small smirk forming on her face as she remembered what had happened earlier. "You fell asleep on me, you know. Even after you promised to stay with me until _I _feel asleep." Her smirk widened. "And you snore too."

He blushed slightly, offering her a timid smile. "Sorry?"

She giggled, closing her eye again. "It's all right. _Technically _you did stay with me until I feel asleep, afterwards too. And, besides, the snoring was kind of cute…"

He chuckled. "Okay, then. I'll take your word for it." He could barely hear her mumbled retort of "You better" before her breaths completely evened out, slowly puffing against the T-shirt he was wearing. He smiled as he watched her sleep for a few minutes before it slackened as he saw the drying tears still on her face. _'Serena… why do all the bad things happen to you? Why do you have to be the one tormented by dreams of my death?'_

He pursed his lips grimly as he thought back to the dream. He'd been disoriented when it'd first begun, knowing he wasn't in his own body, but it wasn't until he saw the blood-soaked slipper and seen the bottom of a gown had he realized it'd been from a female's point of view. And it wasn't until Serena had spoken that he'd been sure it was _her _point of view.

As for the dark-haired man who'd met an brutal and unfortunate end… he'd been looking at a mirror. It had been _him_, he was absolutely positive of it. Him in armor. Him with a sword through his chest. Him struggling to survive. Him with his healing sparks desperately trying to _keep _him alive.

Serena was right --it felt _too _real --and even if he'd been seeing everything from her point of view, he could still feel a slight throb in his shoulder and chest even now. Which was why he didn't need to see the end; he knew it. The dream had only given the _suspicion _he was dying but there was no way he could have possibly survived with those injuries. He'd been stabbed in the chest and coughed up blood --a lung had been punctured and he'd still continued to talk, filling it with blood faster. There'd been lacerations of all degrees covering his body, including the stab wound on his shoulder blade --he would have died of blood loss anytime. He hadn't even been able to stand near the very end. And, when you took how mercilessly the woman had been attacking him, as well as the fact his heal powers had abruptly stopped working… He _knew _he'd died. And the only explanation was that he was living his next reincarnation right this second.

But, the question was, who the hell _had _he been? And why was he trying to get out now with golden eyes? And why was it always _gold_? Golden sparks. Golden transformation phase. Golden eyes. Now there was a golden sword to add to the growing list. Even the sun was streaming golden light through the curtains by the time he finally feel back into a fitful sleep.

* * *

"_**Going home. Jed hiding in his room. Yours is trashed. Not worth the headache to stick around."**_ Zoisite eyed the text message on his PDA oddly. '_Trashed? How the hell could have Jed trashed my room in only a few hours? We only left him with a …chem set._' He instantly scowled. '_That idiot is going to be sorry when I get my hands on him_.'

To distract himself from horrific thoughts of what Jadeite could have possibly done, he picked up his walkie-talkie and hissed into it. "Cadeyrn. What's taking so long? Over."

Deep inside the basement of Tokyo General, Motoki cringed, his head whirling around frantically, until he slumped in relief as he realized it was only Zoisite. This sneaking around thing just wasn't his kind of work. It'd taken him almost two hours to make his way into the basement where the files were stored --apparently not all hospitals were laid out the same, as he'd hoped. He'd opened half a dozen wrong doors, been almost caught a dozen more times, and went down approximately three wrong stairwells. But now he was in front of the files, two of them clenched tightly in his hands. He shoved them under an arm and raced around a corner before pulling out his walkie-talkie. "I'm done. I'll be out in a few minutes. Hopefully. Over."

"So you got Ami's files?" The Frenchman asked anxiously.

Motoki's eyes fell down to the files. "Yeah. I did." He grinned in a cocky, self-satisfied manner as he lifted up the file for one _Hino Rei_. "And something else one of you is sure to really appreciate. Over and out." He chuckled as he turned down the volume of Zoisite's reply of "What the--?"

Sneaking around may not be his kind of thing, but thinking under pressure _was_. The others hadn't even _thought _to look for Rei's medical files, never realizing that they might offer an explanation for who she was in relation to Bellona. Admittedly he hadn't thought of it at first either but here, when he'd been desperately looking for an entrance to the basement, he remembered a time at the arcade when Rei was telling the girls about how she'd run into Ami's mother when she was at the hospital for a flu shot.

He didn't care _why _he'd thought of that particular memory at that particular time, but he had and he wasn't about to forget it. He smirked as his eyes slid down to the file again; he better get some damn good credit for this. _Especially _if it did tell them exactly who, or what, Rei was…

* * *

"I did not think you were the sort to stay out until the early morning hours."

Nephrite blinked, stopping and staring at the woman seated in the middle of his living room couch. In his barely-awake-as-it-was state of mind, he couldn't bring himself to be shocked. "Third time's not so charming, Áine." He told her with a yawn as he closed his door behind him, "Seriously. Next time use the _door_. And I was working on …something." He waved a careless hand. "It took longer than I'd hoped." He scowled slightly in thought. '_And all for practically nothing because Jed's hiding like a baby and wouldn't tell me anything…_'

"Hmm." She rose an eyebrow as he stumbled about the barely-light room, swearing under his breath as he bumped into something or other. "Your daughter isn't with you. Where is she?"

He instantly spun toward her, his eyebrows high on his forehead. "What's with the sudden concern? You didn't even want to see her yesterday."

"That was before I learned something." She answered before pausing briefly. "She is safe, at least?"

He scratched the back of his head, wondering if this was all one strange dream. Was Áine actually being _civil _--and he _back_? "Yeah, sure." He pointed a thumb to the wall that divided his and Darien's apartment. "Endymion is watching her."

Her head instantly turned to the wall, as if she could see through it. "Good." She replied as she looked back at him, "He would not allow anything to harm her."

His eyes narrowed as he walked over her. "What's this all about, Áine? You're starting to freak me out."

Her lips pursed slightly. "I came to tell you that I successfully retrieved the item that was stolen from Valkyrie. You were not here, so I waited."

'_This has to be a dream… A weird, weird dream.'_ He shook his head. "How long ago?"

"I do not know." She admitted as she stood up. Instantly she began to wobble dangerously, grasping her head with a hiss of pain, and he instinctively grabbed a hold of her upper arms to steady her.

His brow furrowed as he looked down at her. In the morning twilight, he could make out faint scorch marks on her skin and burnt holes in her clothes. Seconds later the smell of seared hair and flesh wafted up to his nose and his grip tightened involuntarily. "What happened to you?"

She waved off his hands, standing firm again. "Nothing. I simply cannot handle electrocution as well as Valkyrie."

His mouth dropped open in surprise. "What?"

She shrugged briefly. "The item I retrieved electrocuted me before I could contain it. I was prepared for it but that doesn't mean I can within stand it's affects." She shook her head and held out her hand. "Here. I also came to return this to you."

His eyes flickered down to see his wife's wedding band and he eagerly seized it, turning it this way and that in the light. '_Everything seems to be okay…_' He thought, squinting slightly, '_Not bends or warps_.' "Thank you, for not destroying it." He told Áine gratefully after a few moments, "I was thinking that I might give it to Rose one day and I wanted it like how her mother left it…" He paused, eyeing the woman thoughtfully as she shifted uncomfortably. "So, it helped?"

"It would have done good to tell me about the inscription." She mused as her eyes fell to the ring, seeing a hint of said inscription inside. The intertwined symbols of Jupiter and the West. Valkyrie and Nephrite's symbols. It had been the perfect thing to trick the dome, more than the necklace would have been. "If you had, then the ring would have been returned sooner because I wouldn't have had hesitance to use it."

'_Áine… actually showing __**concern**__? Yup. Definitely a dream.'_ He decided. "Didn't think it was important."

"I suppose not." She looked around and his brow crinkled as he got the oddest feeling she was _stalling_. "I know you don't like me," She began a few moments later, "and, to be quite honest, the feeling is more than mutual." He rose an eyebrow as she smirked. "But I would not lie to you about what I am about to say."

"Okay…"

Her face grew serious. "Keep your daughter close at hand." She paused, looking into his surprised eyes. "She isn't above kidnapping and… I'm concerned… that she will." She watched as he paled, sitting down on the couch heavily. "I'm sorry. I just thought I would warn you of the possibility. It may not happen."

He nodded numbly. "Thank… you." He offered no other words and she nodded slowly before transporting herself out of the room. He barely noticed her departure, instead feeling oddly hollow as he stared down at the wedding ring. '_She might kidnap Rose… Wasn't my wife dying enough? Now someone wants to take away my daughter?_' He glared suddenly, righteous anger taking a hold of him. '_Like hell that'll happen…_'

* * *

"So how have you been?"

Valkyrie froze as she opened the door to the youth hostel and turned to see Thor standing a little ways away and talking on his cell phone. At first a brief hope filled her that it was Dr. Aidan, or even better Artemis, but it was dashed when he said "That's great! I told you you'd make the team!". Her lips pursed and she allowed the door to slam shut behind her, uncaring if she disturbed him or not.

Thor sent a curtsey glance over in the direction of the sound only for his eyes to widen briefly, taking in the sight of his daughter wide awake and storming past him. "Hey, kiddo." He said into his cell phone, loud enough so he was sure she would hear him, "There's another reason I called you. I have some good news that I know you were dying to hear. …Ready for it?" He paused, chuckling. "Yup, you guessed it. I found her! She's with me now, as a matter of fact." He watched half in relief, half in victory, as Valkyrie abruptly stopped in her tracks and sent him a suspicious frown over her shoulder before he winced and peeled the phone away from his ear as a loud cheer echoed through it. "Okay, okay!" He said after a minute with a laugh, "I know you're excited but try not to blow out my eardrum! I'm already getting old as it is!"

The brunette scowled, turning around to face Thor as he watched her pensively. "Well, I don't know. She isn't very happy right now." Her eyes narrowed as he smirked. "I think we should give her a few days, so she doesn't take it out on you." He paused, his attention immediately whirling back to the person on the other end of the call. "Of course she still does! Why wouldn't she?" Her brow knitted together in confusion as he smiled sadly. "You should know she's not like that." He chuckled after a minute. "I suppose that's true. But, you know what this means don't you?" A pause. "Yeah, exactly-- wait. On second thought, send me everything." He laughed. "Yes. I mean _everything_. …Hmm? Oh! _Especially _that! And tell your mom not to go cheap on the shipping either!" Realization dawned on her. '_Must be his son, Thomas. But why would he know __**me**__?_'

"I want them sent as fast and _safest _as possible." Thor continued, all too aware of the stare Valkyrie was trying to bore into his head. "They'd be of no use to anyone ruined." He felt his mouth dropped open seconds that. "I would not cry if they were! Why would I cry!?" His mouth dropped open further before he laughed. "Why you…! Oh? Time for school _now_, huh? Oh, yeah. I believe that." He continued to chuckle. "Your mom's gonna send it today?" He looked around, eyeing the address on the side of the building and reciting it along with what town he was in. "Got it? …Okay, thank you." He paused, smiling. "I love you too; have a good day at school, alright?" His eyes slid to Valkyrie. "I'll talk to her, promise. Bye." He snapped his phone closed, looking at the woman. "Your brother says 'hello'." He stated without preamble.

She snorted, crossing her arms and turned half-away. "I'm an only child and you're not my biological father anymore; I have no brother."

"Hmm." He slid his black phone into his right front pocket, his brow furrowed thoughtfully. "And here I always thought you held a soft spot for Magni(1)."

Involuntarily her eyes softened as she stared at the ground. Magni had been her youngest half-brother; he'd just been pushing five when she'd left for Lunaria at fourteen to be Serenity's guardian. That had been the last time she'd ever seen him… "That was him?"

"Yeah." He answered as he stuffed his hands in his pockets and leaned back against the wall. "He knew I was looking for you over here and made me promise to call you as soon as I found you. I would have last night but it was too late and there was too much interference from the storm, anyways." He chuckled, rubbing his ear. "He's real excited, as you could probably tell."

She bit her lip, debating with herself. She didn't want anything to do with Thor after what he'd said last night, let alone talk to him, but it _did _involve Magni… "Where did you find him?" She asked as she slowly turned back around, her eyes fixed on a crumbling section of the wall.

His shrug went unseen as a result. "Didn't need to. He found me."

"What?" Her head swung over to him incredulously.

He smiled slightly. "He's my --_Howard's_, to be clear-- son. He's Thomas. So he found me, in a matter of speaking." His eyes softened at the thought of what his son had said not long ago. "…He's afraid you won't love him still, you know."

She blinked in surprise. "Why?"

His frown deepened as he looked up, seeing the leftover remains of last night's violent storm creating a dreary gray sky. "When I went out looking for you and your siblings, I actually ended up finding family friends and acquaintances --people like Loki, you know?-- until Magni was born. It's like he draws them to us. We met up with a few of your cousins that way and we even came across Thrúd, too. You know how I said we --me, my ex-wife, and Thomas-- vacationed in New Zealand?" He looked down and over to see her nodding, her brow furrowed. "She was there with some of her friends too. Magni, well you know how he was. He didn't think of whether she'd remember him or not and instantly ran up to her and hugged her, saying how much he missed having his oldest sister around. And, oh, she remembered alright. I don't care how, or when, or how much--" She rose a curious eyebrow; what had perfect Thrúd done to make Thor mad? "--but she remembered at least the two of us. But she took one look at Magni and flat out told him that she had two brothers and he wasn't either of them."

Her eyes searched his carefully. "You're not telling me everything. She said something else to him."

He offered her a tight smile. "Don't worry about it. Let's just say, well, she proved that you might have been right about her all along and we won't be seeing her as much anymore."

She scowled for her little brother's sake. "Well, it's a good thing that that bitch isn't our sister, is she?" His expression instantly darkened but she only stared at him angrily. "If you say one word about how I have to be _nice _to her, then you won't even get a chance to curse before I throw you in the Sea." He rolled his eyes but didn't say anything, so she smirked before growing more serious. "Does… he remember everything?"

He shrugged. "No. He mostly remembers… _odd _things." He laughed suddenly. "He could probably tell you the rules of all his favorite Jovian games and the last trick he played on his mother back then but, other than that, not much. He remembers most of his immediate family and a few other select people but nothing real explicit. But he's still growing, still remembering."

"Then, he doesn't need to attend the Academy?" She paused briefly. "Or Headquarters or whatever you call it? Neph and the others like calling it Headquarters." She explained as he shot her an odd look. She smirked slightly. "I think it makes them feel more important."

He chuckled, shaking his head. "As of right now? No. Just going to primary school in Russia --his mother's Russian." He elaborated, "That's where I said I was when I found out about your 'death', remember? But, no. He doesn't need to go to Artemis's school. He's not in danger in losing his present self, or going crazy, or needs help understanding what he remembers or anything else they do there. He's just fine. But, I suppose you never know what the future will hold."

She nodded, well understanding the truth of that statement. "…So, Thomas, huh? That's kind of unexpected. No Ma-- something? _Michael_, at least? Most people I've come across have a name that at least starts like the same initial that their names back then did. Serena and Ami do, and the generals too…"

"I didn't want him to have a constant reminder of who he had once been." Thor replied simply, "He isn't obligated to be Magni, the son of King Thor. He just needs to be himself, Thomas Wilkins, and I wanted to make sure he knew that from his birth."

"Oh." She looked down at the ground, kicking a few loose pebbles in the road and watching them splash in a puddle. "…By the time I graduated high school," She offered after a few silent minutes, "I'd already had enough college credits to be a sophomore when I went to Harvard --my parents were alumni-- in the fall. One of the classes I took at the community college was kickboxing." She smiled slightly. "It was something I'd always wanted to try but my parents, who consider anything like that uncivilized and violent, didn't want me to at first. I'd been in tae kwon do for years only because they wanted me to have a way to protect myself in case I needed to. But, since it was a class for _college _and, better yet, a _nonacademic _one, I managed to convince them that taking it would allow me to free up more time later for more appropriate classes. Of course, _you _can figure that was a bunch of bullshit and I just really wanted to take the class--" He chuckled. "--but they didn't and practically shoved me out the doors. None of us suspected that was the beginning of the end for me following the family name." Her eyes softened even as her smile turned into a devious grin. "Nephrite was in that class, too, and pretty soon one thing led to another…" She shook her head, looking at him. "My favorite color's still green. My favorite class was always lunch, no matter what year I was in. When I was in New York, I didn't have many friends, or free time, because I was always so busy but I loved going to the mall and the movies like any other teenage girl. I just enjoyed my tae kwon do class more, then my boxing one for obvious reasons." She paused, kicking a few more pebbles away in thought. "I was ready to disown my parents for Nephrite and a chance at having my own life but they turned right around and almost disowned me instead when I got pregnant. My grandma was the only thing that convinced them otherwise but she died a few months before Rose was born, and my relationship with my parents kind of fell flat again. Me and Neph left for the Academy afterwards, because I was so distraught and he knew I needed a change of scenery and pace, but a few months after Rose was born he convinced me to try to patch up things with my parents. We'd been back in New York for a few months and I was almost ready to give in and go to them, but then I was suddenly Makoto…" She stopped, looking up at him. "There. You can write the Valerie Davis life story now."

He chuckled. He knew an apology when he heard one. "Nah. I'll wait until you're big and famous first. That why I know I'll get a hefty price for it." His eyes softened as she smiled, shaking her head. "…You know I never meant to do all those thing to you, right? I don't mean to criticize, or insult, you. And I'd never intentionally leave you on Europa or shoot you with that arrow. Or, _especially_, almost kill you."

She looked at him, a pensive expression on her face. "Deep down inside I knew --_know_. We've never been… all lovey-dovey, or had any real family moments, but that's just the way we are. I understood that the criticism was just because you want me to be better, and do better, and learn to not just lay down and take anyone's crap. And I know that I really did sneak up on you when you almost shot me, so it was my fault, and leaving me on Europa was an accident--"

"Your sister told me you were already aboard the ship." He interjected truthfully, "I didn't think she would lie about something like that. And when I almost killed you…" He grimaced "I honestly forget who you were. You just-- you didn't realize how _good _you were with the sword. You were a complete natural. I forgot you were only this little girl and not some big bad giant."

Her eyes widened before a smile tugged at her lips. "Tell me the next time you run across Thrúd, okay? I have some choice words for her. Maybe even a few lightning bolts, too." She shook her head as he cracked a smirk. "But, yeah, deep down I knew all those things. It's just… sometimes I forget. Or I want to resent you for us not being _normal_." She closed her eyes, relishing in the feel of the storm's aftermath as a cold chill sliced through her. "…I'm sorry. For what I said about you being a bum and everything else, and for causing that storm last night, too." She offered awkwardly, "I just…"

He smiled, cutting her off. "I know. We're a lot alike, Valkyrie. We've always been." He paused, his eyebrow raising in surprise. "Did you really cause the storm?"

She instantly looked upwards with her own smile. "I did; I can feel my energy in the air. I didn't mean to but I suppose it was a good thing in the very end." She eyed him out of the corner of her eye. "Do… do you think I could talk to Magni? The next time you call him?"

"He likes Tommy." He offered, "And I'll call him once the package arrives."

"What _are _you having him send?" She asked, her brow crinkling as she remembered the odd conversation.

He blinked innocently but the devious smirk on his face ruined the effect. "Your wedding present, of course."

She could only stare at him before chuckling and facing the sky again. Yup, she'd never understand this Thor. '_But, maybe we can get along this time around anyways. I hope we can…_'

* * *

"_**Ladies and gentlemen, due to severe weather, we are making an unscheduled stop in St. John's, Newfoundland. We apologize for any inconvenience and promise to return to the air as soon as the storm passes and travel is safe once more. Again, we are making an unscheduled stop in Newfoundland because of the possibility of lightning strikes but will continue to New York as soon as the skies clear. We apologize for the inconvenience and thank you for flying Air--"**_

On board flight 129 from Heathrow Airport in London to the JFK Airport in New York, one man bit back his instinctive cat-like hiss as the stewardess quickly ducked into the back of the airplane and out of sight. A tight scowl formed on his face as he looked out the window to see fearsome black clouds hanging in the air. '_I have a bad feeling about this…_'

* * *

Done: July 12, 2009 9pm

Posted: July 12, 2009 9:30pm

Well, there ya go! Now you've learned where Makoto/Valkyrie has been these past few weeks as well as the dysfunctional relationships she has with her families. I kind of like that she doesn't have parents in the anime/manga because then I can do things like that… And, unfortunately, you have to wait until next time to find out what's up with the poison. After Jadeite stops hiding in his room, that is. Hehe. ;)

And, hey, you guys finally found out that HQ is really a _school_! Bet you didn't expect that, did ya? It may not seem like it, but I really have been planning that for awhile. :) Now I wonder if that means there'll be a change of scenery in the future… _Hmm_.

**NOTE**: It's not addressed but Valkyrie _doesn't _have the ability to transport like Venus does, which is why she doesn't just use that to go home.

(1). Thor -- The red-haired and bearded Norse god of Thunder. He is the son of Odin (the supreme god) and a giantess. He has a wife named Sif, with whom he has his daughter Thrúd (meaning "strength"). His sons Magni ("strong") and Módi ("angry") are her half-brothers, they being born from a giantess. He's renowned for his hammer, Mjolnir ("crusher"), that is enchanted to return back to him when thrown. It can also throw lightning bolts, change size, and it'll never miss a target. Donner ("thunder") is the German version of his name, which is why Valkyrie makes that comment.

(2). Valhalla/ Valhöll --"Hall of the Slain". It's the home of the "Einherjar", which is just a fancy word for the souls of the greatest heroes slain in battle. Valkyries/ valkyrja "chooser of the slain", as you can probably guess, are the ones to pick out who gets to go there. Valhalla is ruled over by Odin, and is this majestic hall where the heroes drink and dine as they prepare to aid Odin in Ragnarök.

(3). Ragnarök (no, not the game. lol) --"final destiny of the gods". In Norse mythology, it is a series of events that led up to a great battle and subsequent death of gods (including Thor) and mythical figures. It, also, leads to the occurrence of natural disasters and the resulting submersion of the world in water. Can anyone see where I'm going with this? _**This**_, ladies and gentlemen, is a take on the Silver Millennium's Fall. Hehe. I thought it was an _absolutely __**perfect**_description of the scenes I'd seen play out in my head. And, better yet, I get to tie it into the story later as something "believable"~!

(4). Callisto, Europa, and Thebe are all moons on Jupiter. Won't get into the description of them since I'll pretty much fictionalize them, anyways.

(5). Loki -- The Norse trickster god, and also a shape shifter. He's a good guy turned bad in mythology, but in my story he's just a very minor character so he'll probably stay good. :)

_**FYI, since I know I confused you guys with the whole "Jovian descendants/ancestry/home of your forefathers"-thing**_

Scandinavia surmises of present-day Norway, Sweden, Denmark and some also include Iceland and Finland (also, a special thank you to _**Kima5489 **_for pointing out that Iceland and Greenland can also be considered Scandinavian). Those same countries can also be referred to the "Nordic countries". In my story, Jovians were Nordic in nature --Vikings, if you want a _generalization _of what that can mean. The Senshi and everyone else haven't been the _only _reincarnations that have ever existed --other people who remembered the Sil-Mil too, at different eras… That's all I'm going to say for right now because it'll be explained later in the story. All you need to understand right now is those Nordic countries were _heavily _influenced by Jovian heritage --even if they didn't always know it.

Okay! Now that that's all done… A few chapters back I was asked to do a scorecard of everyone and everything (okay, maybe I added a little more information than what was asked but, hey, that's just how I am) so, here it is. You have no idea how long it took to get this to look decent, so do me a favor and read it! xD

**Sil Mil Name---| Sil Mil Title-------------------------------------------| Current Name------------------------------| Current Title**

Serenity. . . . . . | Crown-Princess of Lunaria; Heiress to Silver Alliance | Serena Tsukino. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | Sophomore at Juuban High, age 16

Endymion. . . . . | Prince/King of Terra . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| Darien Shields. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | Freshman at Tokyo University, age 18

Áine. . . . . . . . . | Lady Áine; Sailor Venus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| Minako Aino/Wilhemima Rogers*. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | Cover-- student at Tokyo University, age ((unknown))

Bellona. . . . . . .| Lady Bellona; Sailor Mars; Aries Priestess. . . . . . . . . | Rei Hino**. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | Junior at T*A Girls Private School, age 17

Valkyrie. . . . . . | Lady Valkyrie; Sailor Jupiter. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | Valerie Davis née Edwards/ Makoto Kino***.| Mother, age 20

Albreda. . . . . . .| Lady Albreda; Sailor Mercury. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | Ami Mizuno . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | Sophomore at Juuban High, age 16

Cadeyrn. . . . . . | a Prince of Sol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | Motoki Furuhata . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | Sophomore at Tokyo University, age 19

Kunzite. . . . . . .| Lord Kunzite, Northern General of Terra . . . . . . . . . . | ((Unknown)). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | Undercover DK general, age ((unknown)

Jadeite. . . . . . . | Lord Jadeite, Far-Eastern General of Terra. . . . . . . . . .| Jamison Lynton. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| ((unknown)), age 20

Nephrite. . . . . . | Lord Nephrite, North American General of Terra. . . . | Neil Davis. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | PR for Academy/HQ; spokesperson, recruiter, age 21

Zoisite. . . . . . . .| Lord Zoisite, European General of Terra. . . . . . . . . . .| Zander Wynne. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | Maintains/builds electronics for HQ, age 20

Luna. . . . . . . . . | Luna, Lady of Tranquility. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | Luna. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | Guides Sailor Senshi, age ((unknown))

Artemis. . . . . . . | Artemis, teacher/adviser to Endymion and generals. .| Arthur Lunvaire. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| Commander of HQ; Darien's lawyer, age ((unknown))

Ataegina. . . . . . | ((unknown title)) Sailor Saturn. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | Hotaru. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | None, age (estimated) 4

*Minako Aino is Áine's Japanese alias. She was Wilhelmina Rogers while she was in England acting/modeling/etc for Sailor V promotions. She still is Áine, however, because she never died.

**Rei Hino has the physical appearance of Bellona but the real Bellona is currently at Headquarters, in a coma and has been for centuries. It is unknown who/what Rei Hino really is but currently, she's the closest thing to present Bellona, so all "Present" information pertains to her.

***Valerie was brainwashed into believing she was a Japanese teenager when she is in actuality a married American mother. All "Present" information pertains to Valerie because Makoto isn't the real reincarnation --it was just a cover.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sil Mil Family-------------------------------------------------------------------| Present Family

_Serenity_____________________________________________ Serena_

Mother: Queen Selenity of Lunaria. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| Ikuko Tsukino (homemaker)

Father: Prince Selwyn of Sol. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| Kenji Tsukino (newspaper reporter, photographer)

Others: cousins, Áine, Cadeyrn. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| Brother, Shingo (middle school student, age 12)

Significant other: (husband) Endymion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| Unofficial relationship with Darien.

_Endymion____________________________________________ Darien_

Mother: ((unnamed)) Queen of Terra. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| Abigail Shields (deceased)

Father: ((unnamed)) King of Terra. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| Henry Shields (deceased)

Others: ((unknown)). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| Lawyer/family friend-- Arthur Lunvaire

Significant other: (wife) Serenity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | Unofficial relationship with Serena.

_Áine_________________________________________________ Áine_

Mother: Queen Cleopatra of Venus. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | N/A

Father: ((unnamed)) Prince of Sol. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | N/A

Others: cousin, Serenity; brother, Cadeyrn. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| Still considers Serenity a cousin; Cadeyrn a brother

Significant other: (lover) Kunzite; Child-- ((unnamed, murdered))| Still loves Kunzite

_Bellona______________________________________________ Rei_

Mother: ((unnamed)) Martian . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | ((unnamed)) deceased Japanese woman

Father: ((unnamed)) Martian . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| ((unnamed)) Japanese man (political figure)

Others: ((Unknown)). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | grandfather-- Grandpa Hino (Shinto priest)

Significant other: (affianced) Jadeite. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | None currently

_Valkyrie_____________________________________________ Valerie_

Mother: ((unnamed)) Jovian. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| Kathryn Edwards (American lawyer)

Father: King Thor of Jupiter. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| Oliver Edwards (American lawyer)

Others: sister, Princess Thrúd; brother, Magni; uncles, Baldur, Váli.| Only child; grandmother(maternal), Rose. Still considers Magni little brother.

Significant other-- (lover) Nephrite. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| husband-- Neil Davis; daughter-- Rose Davis

_Albreda______________________________________________ Ami_

Mother: ((unnamed)) Mercurial. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| Saeko Mizuno (doctor)

Father-- ((unnamed)) Mercurial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | ((unnamed)) German father* (artist)

Others-- ((unknown)) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | None; only child

Significant other-- (affianced) Zoisite. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | None currently; crush on Zander but believes he's still in love with his "dead" wife.

_Cadeyrn______________________________________________ Motoki_

Mother: Queen Cleopatra of Venus. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| ((unnamed))

Father: ((unnamed)) Prince of Sol. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| ((unnamed))

Others: sister, Áine; cousin, Serenity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| Still considers Áine a sister; Serenity a cousin

Significant other: ((unknown)). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | ((unknown))

_Kunzite______________________________________________ ((Unknown present-name))_

Mother: ((unnamed)) Lunarian. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| ((unknown))

Father: ((unnamed)) Lunarian. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| ((unknown))

Others: ((unknown)). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | ((unknown))

Significant other: (lover) Áine; Child-- ((unnamed, murdered)*. . .| Still loves Áine, but believes her to be a traitor.

_Jadeite_______________________________________________ Jamison_

Mother: ((unnamed)). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | ((unnamed))

Father: ((unnamed)). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| ((unnamed))

Others: ((unknown)). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| ((unknown))

Significant other: (affianced) Bellona. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | Stills loves Bellona, considers her fiancée.

_Zoisite_______________________________________________ Zander_

Mother: ((unnamed)). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | ((unnamed)) Frenchman

Father: ((unnamed)). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| ((unnamed)) Frenchwoman

Others: ((unknown)). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| ((unknown))

Significant other: (affianced) Albreda. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | Still loves Albreda, considers her "wife".

_Luna_________________________________________________ Luna_

Mother: ((unnamed)) Mau citizen***. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| N/A****

Father: ((unnamed)) Mau citizen. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| N/A

Others: ((unknown)). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | N/A

Significant other: (soul mate) Artemis. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| Soul-mates are always soul-mates.

_Artemis_______________________________________________ Artemis/Arthur_

Mother: ((unnamed)) Mau citizen. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| N/A*****

Father: ((unnamed)) Mau citizen. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| N/A

Others: ((unknown)). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | family friend/lawyer/secret ward-- Darien

Significant other: (soul mate) Luna. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| Same; a soul-mate always is one.

_Ataegina______________________________________________ Hotaru_

Mother: ((unnamed)) Saturnite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | ((assumed)) Pluto******

Father: ((unnamed) Saturnite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .| None

Others: ((unknown)) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | Darien trying to get guardianship

Significant other: None . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . | None, too young.

*Just want to make it clear, when Ami moved to Japan she took on her mother's maiden name. Because it was Japanese, she hoped that the teasing wouldn't be as severe. Being the new kid --especially the genius new kid-- is already bad enough. Being the foreign, genius new kid just makes it all the horrible. Seeming to be native Japanese was supposed to make the transition back to Japan easier.

**Kunzite doesn't know Áine was pregnant, the baby was murdered before he ever knew about it.

***Like canon, Mau in this story is a planet in a distant galaxy.

****She never died but was put in a deep sleep, walking up in modern-day Tokyo.

*****Like Luna, he was just in a deep sleep. He, however, woke up at an unknown time and could have been up to anything.

******Everyone is assuming Pluto is her mother because they were in an accident together. Hotaru is mute, so she can't offer the information and Pluto is currently in a coma.

_So_, I figure a few of you might be wondering why I even bothered to put in all the slots only to get "unknown/unnamed" in about half of them. It's because I'll slowly be filling them in and, when the new story starts, I'll give you a completely updated list. Not complete, exactly, but I'm hoping a lot of those "unknowns/unnamed" will be filled up. :)

And since I'm sure I've broken the record for longest A/N ever, that's all I'm going to say. Well, that and "Please R/R, always appreciated". And go ahead and ask your questions since I know there are many!

_Tiger Celeste._


	32. Chapter 32

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

Sorry! I've been so busy finding/editing continuity errors in previous chapters and planning the continuation that I kind of got too caught up in it. (And, hey, I'm finally reading the SM manga too! Yay!) Then, the next thing I knew, it was past my usual month chapter for _two _months. But now I'm here to remedy that --hopefully with another chapter to follow in a week or two! :D

**NOTICE: **One said error I found is that, based on the Japanese school year, Darien is supposed to be _nineteen_, not eighteen like I've made him. Please make a note of that --he will be three years older than Serena now. (Like the manga).

**NOTE**: I want to clear up a few things about last chapter. First off, _yes_, both Áine and Pluto know Valkyrie is alive. No one else does, though. (Not even Faux-Serenity or Queen Beryl). Áine, however, doesn't know _where _she is-- she just knows she's missing because her emerald still had a barrier around it. (If Valkyrie really died, then the barrier wouldn't have a reason to protect her gem, right?). As for Pluto, she knows because, I mean, she's _Pluto_! And when she tells Artemis "If you were half as observant as you should be, you would have already noticed what another already has." _That_, is a reference to Áine --revealing that she's well aware of the Venusian knowing her comrade is alive. Second of all, Pluto isn't _really _a stewardess. She just disguised herself and made sure that Artemis knew she was dead (hehe, get it?) serious about her message that someone was going to die in Tokyo --thus making sure he would hurrying up. But it's kind of hard to do so when his plane is being forced to make an unexpected stop in Newfoundland because of a storm Valkyrie caused… Irony is fantastic, isn't it? :)

So, this chapter was originally about… sixty pages? ;p Suffice to say, it had to be split in two. So, everyone out there that I gave a guesstimate on how long the story is going to last (_**mid-forties**_**_!_**), add one chapter to that please!

On to the story~!

* * *

"Jadeite, it's almost eight! Stop being a baby already!" Zoisite yelled through the locked door that connected he and his comrade's hotel suites. He pounded his fist against the wood a few times when he received no answer. "You can't hide in there forever!"

Inside the room, the Far-Eastern general rolled his eyes and snorted. Like he was afraid of _Zoisite_. "Want to bet!?" The smirk he was wearing faded as he glanced down at all the sheets of paper lying next to each other on his bed. Áine and Ami's test results. He groaned, rubbing his forehead. '_I may not be afraid of him, but I'm afraid of what he'll do…_'

Zoisite rolled his eyes at the typical response. "And what about food?" He shot back, "You can't go an hour without eating something!"

Jadeite jerked in surprise but scowling darkly. "Do not! And even if I couldn't, so what!? I have a high metabolism!" He was studiously ignoring how his arms had folded defensively. "Besides, I have a mini-bar and a basket of fruit!" He added victoriously as his eyes fell to the said basket on his night table.

The European general snorted in disbelief. "So you're telling me that you're going to pay those outrageous prices? A yogurt costs like twelve bucks!"

The redhead blanched, turning his head to look at his mini-fridge. The door was closed but the area in front of it was littered with some of its previous contents, scattered and opened now. After he'd cleaned up the chemical foam mess, he'd barricaded himself in his room and might have gotten hungry a few times through the early morning… He'd ate at least three yogurts, too. He scowled after a moment, mentally cursing Zoisite for not telling him that sooner, but unwilling to admit what he'd done out loud. "I'd rather be poor than _dead!_"

Zoisite scowled as a piece of hair fell in his eyes and he noticed it was much lighter than he remembered. He'd have to re-dye it soon; light brunette wasn't a far jump from his natural dirty blonde. He rolled his eyes again as he heard his friend's muffled response. "I'm not going to kill you, I just want to talk to you."

"I've heard that before!"

The Frenchman heaved a long suffering sigh as he turned to the man sprawled out on the couch. "Cadeyrn!" The blonde jumped at the sharp voice but didn't bother opening his eyes as he replied with a _"Hmm?" _Zoisite scowled. "You try to get him out. I'm going to call Nephrite again to see if he's awake yet."

"Yesh, swir!" Motoki slurred sleepily, opening one eye blearily as he mock-saluted the man as he stomped out of the room. He gave no thought to why Zoisite was leaving when there was a perfectly good phone next to him. It was new too, if he remembered correctly. Something about it being thrown because of Commander…

A few minutes later, as the Solarian tired to remember what he was supposed to be doing, the door between the generals' suites eased open and Jadeite popped his head out slowly. "_Pst!_ Cadeyrn!"

"Leave me _alone_." The man instantly muttered half-irritably, half-whiny. He pulled the small couch cushion over his head pointedly. "I only got two hours of sleep!"

"Zoi gone?" The redhead continued in a low voice, his head turning every which was as if he thought his friend would pop out from behind the furniture. It wouldn't be the first time it happened, honestly. The man was crazy sometimes.

"Zoi's an ass!" Motoki instantly responded before blinking a few times. He grimaced and half-sat up, looking at the man who was _technically _his superior --along with the other generals, including the "ass". "Wait. Don't tell him I said that, okay?"

Jadeite snorted on a laugh. "He _is _one." He shook his head, smirking, as he came to his own conclusion Zoisite had really left. He stood up from his crouching position and stretched widely. "Why'd you only get two hours of sleep?" He asked the other man in the room, "I heard you two come in around three-thirty."

"It was _four_." The blonde groaned pathetically. "Halfway back here, he remembered he and Nephrite had forgotten the sample of Serenity's blood --which, how in Sol's sake does _that _happen? That was one of the most important things!"

Jadeite looked at the man oddly. How _did _that happen? "Where's the sample at? You put it in the fridge, right? It has to stay cold."

Motoki didn't seem to hear him as he continued to complain about his night and early morning. "--And when he dragged me back to the first hospital to get it, we snuck around for who-knows-long trying to find where they store the blood. We finally did find it, which was a _miracle _in and of itself, and when I was all ready to go home and sleep until next month he dragged me _here _to look over the files. And he _forced _me to hand over Rei's file when I wanted to give it to _you_."

Jadeite, who had been nodding along absently, froze. "Rei? You got Rei's files, too?"

"Yup." Motoki replied as he, now done with his rant, sat up and yawned widely. He gestured to the coffee table offhandedly, where some of the files were opened and a few sheets of paper scattered around. "It's in there. Somewhere. I figured it might tell us who, or what maybe, she is. At least in relation to Bellona. And Serenity's blood _is _in the mini-fridge, by the way."

Jadeite quickly wandered over to the table, shifting a few stacks out of the way, before his eyes fell on a headshot of Rei paper-clipped to one side of a manila envelope. "_Bell_…" He whispered absently, sinking down to his knees so he could have a closer look. His eyes stayed fixed on the image for a few moments before turning to Motoki, a wide grin splitting his face. "Now you, Cadeyrn, are a true friend."

The blonde opened his mouth to respond but was cut off by a rapping knock on the door and a graveling voice announcing "Room service". His brow furrowed as he turned to look at the door. _'Room service? That's odd. I don't remember Zoisite ordering--'_

"Food!" Jadeite cried eagerly, a telling rumbling beginning in his stomach that said his raiding of the mini-fridge _wouldn't _have been enough for the day. He opened the door only to cry out in surprise as he was tackled by a man must certainly _not _someone from the food industry. "_**Gah**_!"

'_--anything._' Motoki finished, his eyes wide as he took in the scene of Jadeite sprawled out on his stomach, his head being smashed against the carpet by Zoisite whom sat in the middle of his back. There actually _was _a service cart outside the door but it was obvious the Frenchman must have "borrowed" it because there was no one else in sight or any food on it.

"Zoi!" Jadeite exclaimed in shock as he tried to shove the man off. "What the hell!?"

The other general only laughed, shoving his friend's head against the carpet while he grabbed a hold of the arm headed for him. That had been _too _easy. "I _knew _you'd fall for that!" He taunted with a snicker, "That's the oldest trick in the book!" He let more of his weight fall onto Jadeite's back as the man continued to struggle and smirked as he received a pained groan in reply.

The light redhead rolled his eyes as he looked up to see Motoki torn between bewilderment and amusement. He knew the feeling well but right now he was just pissed. And hungry. "You may be a true friend Cadeyrn but _he_, on the other hand, is just an asshole."

"What was that?' Zoisite asked menacingly as he leaned forward to look down at his comrade's face. "I'm your _best _friend, moron!"

"Are not!" For his effort, Jadeite had a knee shoved deeper into the small of his back. "_Ow_! Shit, Zoi! What kind of best friend _are _you!?"

The European man smirked. "The best, of course." The smirk was wiped off only seconds later as he found Jadeite behind him and an arm around the front of his neck in a chokehold. "How in the world…?" He wheezed as he struggled to heave the man over his head. Unfortunately, that only earned him the arm squeezed tighter.

Jadeite laughed. "_I'm _the martial artist here, Zoi, remember?" He scowled childishly. "And I'm going to prove that I'm _your _best friend because I'm not afraid to kick your ass!"

"Ha! Big words!" Zoisite wheezed in a laugh. "For the man that almost _failed _gym!"

Jadeite looked momentarily shocked as he was successfully thrown over his friend's head before he jerked up, glaring, and the quick retort of "I don't test well!" forming before he tackled Zoisite. Seconds later, as he pushed the man's head against the carpet, he added a victorious "And, besides, the coach _hated _me and that was in grade _nine_!"

"Technicalities!" The Frenchman sputtered as he wrestled out of the grip he was in.

Only a few feet away from the bickering men, Motoki was spread out on the couch and blissfully dead to the world as snores began to erupt from his nose.

* * *

A blonde teenager moaned lightly and buried her face deeper into her pillow as a stream of light hit her square in the eyes. It was too _early _to be morning. She sighed blissfully as her pillow grabbed her closer and blocked out the sun with its fluffy-goodness. '_Who knew pillows were so nice?_' She thought as her lips curved into a dreamy smile. '_I mean, all we do is squash them with our heads and arms…_' A few minutes later, her brow furrowed as her expression fell flat. '_Wait a minute. Pillows can __**not **__move themselves!_'

She gasped, her eyes flying open only to see red material, and frantically began pushing at the chest of the person next to her. Immediately a groan sounded in her ear and she froze in horror as she noticed it was masculine. "_Odango_." The voice continued grumpily, "It's too early to be morning. Stop moving."

She instantly relaxed at the sound of "Odango" and the memories of Darien falling asleep next to her, before giggling as he vocalized her earlier thoughts. "Daylight waits for no one~!" She sung, all her fear evaporating as she looked up from where she was lying on his shoulder, her eyes twinkling with mirth.

He peeked one eye open, staring at her in bemusement. "Are you always this chipper in the morning?"

She tried to sit up only for his grip around her waist to tighten, effectively preventing her from moving anywhere. She rose an eyebrow but didn't comment on it. If anything, her smile only grew wider and bashful. "Nope. Are you always this cheerful?"

"Too early for sarcasm." He mumbled, letting his head fall back on her pillow in such a dramatic way that she had to giggle again. He grinned in reply.

"And just why are you so tired?" She continued to giggle. "I felt like I slept for ages!"

He rose an eyebrow as he propped himself up on his elbow, his other arm still stretched out over her waist. "Because I broke my promise to stay with you until you fell asleep, remember? _I _fell asleep. It was only right that I make up for it by making sure I did as I told you and kept the nightmares away. And, look, no more nightmares."

Her smile faded as her gaze fell to the chest eye-level with her. "It's always the exact same…" She whispered absently.

"Serena." He sighed as he let go of her waist to cup her chin and bring her eyes back up to his. She blinked suspiciously moist eyes. "Trust me. I'm not going to die like that." She only stared at him blankly but as he rested his forehead against hers, he could see a small smile beginning to play on the corners of her lips. "I am _not _going to die, Odango." He smiled wryly, trying to find humor in the situation. "Besides, have you seen a woman wielding a golden sword _anywhere_? I certainly haven't."

She instantly froze, gasping, and he thought it was in reminder of the nightmare until she lifted her forehead away from his. Wide eyes frantically searched his own. "You… I didn't _tell _you that. And--and you knew you'd been stabbed in my dream without me telling you that _either_." She stopped, her eyes widening almost comically. "You dreamt the same thing somehow, didn't you!? With the youma and the s-" Her breath hitched involuntarily. "--sword?" She gasped again as he nodded.

"Yes. I was… you." He explained hesitantly as his hand fell from her face, "And you watched me die on a battlefield. A woman stabbed me with a golden sword and…" His brow crinkled as he struggled to remember the very last bit of the dream. Only a burst of white light and a haze of emotion filled the timeslot. "And I think you tried to stop her."

She took a shuttering breath and unwillingly found her eyes fixed on his chest again. The same chest that she'd watched being rammed through with an unnaturally colored sword. Her eyes begin to water as she brought a shaky hand to touch the material over the area, making sure it was as dry and free of blood as it looked. "I was just so… _distraught_. In every sense of the word." She whispered, looking up at him with glittering eyes. "I _knew _you were dying. You had to be because your healing sparks stopped working." She kept her hand on his heart as her eyes narrowed in on his face as an emotion she couldn't catch flashed through his eyes. "What is it?" He instantly tensed, staring at her with uncertain eyes, but she had a feeling if she hadn't been this close and touching him, she wouldn't have noticed. "Tell me." She insisted. She was about to repeat herself, thinking he was going to pass it off as nothing, when he nodded and blew his breath out in a rush.

"I… have a suspicion." He explained slowly, "About what happened to me."

Her hand fell slack from his chest and her eyes watered even more. "You died. That's what happened."

"No, no." He said quickly as his free hand shot out to grab hers, "_Afterwards_. After I died."

"…What?" She asked against her better judgment.

"_This_," He began as he clasped her hand against his chest again pointedly, "is my next life. The man in the dream was my incarnate."

"Okay…" She could believe that; she was supposed to be a reincarnation too, right?

"But I think something might have gone wrong." He continued, "My gold eyes, remember?" Her own eyes widened as she realized where he was going with the train of thought. "You told me that when I have gold eyes, I act like a different person at the same time I act like myself. That my speech pattern is different, and I walk and act with more dignity than normal. You saw the armor I was wearing. I was a soldier of some sort and I know that if I was one _now_, I would act and walk with much more dignity. And from what I gather, the Silver Millennium was more refined in nature than this time, so of course the speech matter would be more proper. As for seeming like myself and not simultaneously--" He shrugged slightly. "--that's self explanatory if it's my incarnate."

She swallowed thickly. "You… think _that's _what the gold eyes are? Your incarnate trying to get out?"

He nodded. "It makes sense --a _lot _of sense-- and I honestly think that's what's happening to me." He trailed off in a pause. "I put myself in that situation last night. What would I do if I was dying but knew you were out there, in a dangerous situation?"

She bit her lip nervously. "What would you do?"

"I can think of two things that I wouldn't let anyone, no matter who, stop me from seeing them through." He answered grimly, "First and foremost, I would find you again and make sure you were okay. No matter what it took. Second, get my revenge against the woman that killed me and, more than likely, you as well." Her lips parted in surprise even as he sighed, his brow furrowing. "We've already come to the conclusion that I got those gold eyes when I was mad on your behalf, right? Like the woman on the street and everything else?" She nodded slowly, staring at him uneasily --as if waiting for those golden eyes to appear. "Then I know that's what _has _to be happening." He declared solemnly, "I _am _being possessed but it's by my incarnation and he's dead set on protecting you, maybe from everyone, because he failed to do so before. But, _especially _from that woman because of what she did."

"But… but we don't know _who _she is." She commented, "_I _can never see her clearly during any of those dreams." She paused as a thought occurred to her. "Could _you_, though? Like, what her features were? Maybe even recognize her?"

He shook her head regretfully. "No. I could only tell she was a woman because of her silhouette." His lips curved up sardonically. "Huh. It was just like when--" His eyes widened as they flashed down to her. "--like when I spoke to the Princess."

She gasped as she sat up on her knees beside him. "The _Princess_? That--that couldn't have been _her_."

"I don't know." He gazed up at her without really seeing her. "The woman in your dream and the princess have vaguely similar forms what I could make out. Yet, they could simply have a similar build…" His eyes sharpened suddenly. "But the armor I wore. It was the same cobalt and silver armor I had when I spoke with the princess."

"Armor." She repeated slowly, "It was a war. You seen it. Youma everywhere." She bit her lip suddenly. "Luna said that the Moon Kingdom was invaded, remember? I think… I think that's what was happening. The invasion. Of course you'd wear armor during a war. _Especially _if you were a soldier like you might have been. And--and, if you're a soldier, don't you wear your armor in the presence of a Princess? That's what always happens in the story books…" Her eyes widened briefly as if she'd just revealed a deep, dark secret. "O-of course that's kind of babyish so, um, I--I…"

He chuckled as she stopped, her face flaming in a blush. "It's not babyish, Serena. You're absolutely right. A soldier would wear armor in the presence of someone of a higher rank." He paused, a considering frown on his face. "And I do think your dream was about the invasion but, there's something _wrong_. Something we're not seeing."

She looked down at him confusion. "Like what?"

He didn't met her eyes. "You saw my face. I didn't care that I was dying, I cared that _you _were in danger. Yet, if you're this supposed Dark Kingdom general's wife, then why would I be horrified you were there and in _danger_? Unless… unless I was the bad guy _too_."

"You are _not _the bad guy!" She insisted immediately, "You're--you're Tuxedo Mask! You help _defeat _the bad guy!"

"Only because you did." He countered just as swiftly, watching her intently. "I became Tuxedo Mask for _you_; you were the one that called me out to that first battle and I stayed because I wanted to _protect _you. I would have stopped helping a long time ago if you'd stopped. _And _you saw the way I was being attacked in the dream. As soon as I'd been stabbed in the chest, I'd ruptured a lung. On top of all my other injuries, I would have died soon enough with or without my healing sparks. But, but that woman… she just kept _going_. She didn't stop until my death was absolutely imminent. You don't do that to some random passerby in the battlefield, you'd injure them as good as you could as fast as you can so you can move along to someone more important. Like the commander or… the… _general_." He stopped short.

"No…" She shook her head in horror. "You are not a Dark Kingdom general!"

He shook his own head, only much more calmly. "Someone on the _good _side would never attack anyone so mercilessly like that. Enemy or not. So, either I was on the good side, and the woman was the bad guy, or… or I was the _really _bad guy. Someone that people would be happy to see dead. And, considering what people think about you, I think it's safe to assume I was the bad---_mumff_." His eyes widened in surprise as she abruptly lunged at him, knocking him off his elbow and down onto his back.

They stared at each other with wide eyes, their lips touching in an accidental feather-light kiss, before she gathered her bearings and pulled away. She stayed hovering over him, however, and a blush began to seep into her cheeks as he continued to stare at her, utterly still and silent. Yet she didn't let that stop her from staring him straight in the eye. "_Stop _saying you're the bad guy because I know you're _not_. It's impossible." She said firmly.

He frowned as he propped himself back up on his elbows. "But if _you _are the bad guy then that must mean I--" This time, before he could get the words out, he was being full-out lip locked with the blonde. He froze for a fraction of a second in sheer surprise before he began to return the kiss. All too soon for him, however, Serena remembered herself and pulled away again. Despite how brief the exchange was, she still blinked down at him owlishly a few times and her breathing was a little sallower than normal. He instantly grinned as he watched her, rather proud of himself for inducing that kind of reaction out of her.

She, in the meantime, shook her head but didn't bother questioning the lunacy of her actions --just like she hadn't bothered questioning the idea as it occurred to her before acting on it. She abruptly focused back on the task at hand and pinned him with a glower. "Stop it. You are--"

"--the bad guy." He finished as his eyes darted to her lips unconsciously. "It's only obvious because--"

She glared and pressed her hands firmly against his shoulders, holding him to the bed, and leaned down to shut him up with another kiss before catching sight of his twinkling eyes. She stopped inches away from his lips as realization dawned on her. "You--you just--! _Ooh_." Her giggle ruined her imposing glare. "You think you're so clever, don't you?"

He grinned up at her. "I have my moments." The grin widened as he placed a hand on the back of her neck and began kneading the skin there. "And, I have to say, _this _is one of my best I've had in a long while." He chuckled as he pulled her down for another kiss. She went down willingly, smiling all the way, yet their lips were barely touching in a kiss --perhaps even lighter than their accidental one-- when they suddenly tore away from each other with startled gasps.

"_Serena!_" The sound of footsteps creaking up the stairs followed Mrs. Tsukino's holler less than a second later. "You better be awake! It's almost time for breakfast!"

They looked at each other with wide eyes and she released a barely-smothered shriek as she realized what kind of position they were in --_and _how they looked. They were both disheveled from a mixture of sleep and their _almost _make out session --she quickly bit back a giddy giggle at the thought-- and she was still hovering over him and clutching his shoulders --which she was still _pinning down _to the _bed_-- while he clutched her waist like she was his last lifeline. All together, it looked like they were--were…

Darien suddenly began chuckling quietly, making her look at him incredulously. "Being caught in your bed is one thing but being caught while you're ravishing me is something else entirely."

She gaped, flushing a bright red. "Wh--what! I was not _r-ravishing _you!"

"Our position might suggest otherwise." He commented as his eyes fell down to where her hands were still clutching his shoulders. She gasped as she followed his line of sight before all but throwing herself off of him. He instantly propped himself up on his elbows again and shook his head as she settled back on her knees, her attention fixed on the open doorway nervously. "And so does my recent memory, actually." He mused thoughtfully, "You attacked me."

"This _isn't _the time for joking!" She smacked him in the stomach and he groaned in pain, choking on his laugh. "My mother is about to catch us in bed together!" She gasped, her eyes staring down at him in horror as the footsteps stopped in their tracks cold. She'd hissed the words but they had obviously still been loud enough for her mother to hear. Meaning she was _that _close now…

He winced. "I think it's too late. There's nowhere to go." It was looking worse for them as the seconds ticked by and Mrs. Tsukino remained silent. He figured she was trying to either A, hope to death her suspicion was incorrect or B, giving them enough time to make themselves "decent". Knowing how much she seemed to not like him, however, it was probably option C, "Could I get away with murder? I'm an innocent housewife and there will be no evidence, certainly no body…". He groaned, hanging his head as a hesitant voice floated up to them.

"…Serena?"

The blush on the blonde's face darkened at all the questions in her name. "Get out, get _out_!" She ordered in a sort of muffled shrieking voice as she began pushing him. Within seconds, his surprised form was falling onto the ground with a loud thud and a moan of pain. Mrs. Tsukino's worried voice was instantaneous.

"Serena? Is everything okay …up there?"

"I don't think that's what they meant by tough love." He mused to himself wryly before shaking his head and sitting up. "Odango!" He groaned as he rubbed the back of his head surly. "That'll only make us look--" He heaved a sigh as a blanket and pillow were thrown over his head. "--guilty."

"We _are _guilty!" She hissed, waving her hand around erratically as she leaned over the side of her bed to look at him. "Do you _not _remember what we were just doing? In my _bed _on top of that!"

He pushed off the blanket, staring over at her wide-eyed, petrified look half in bemusement, half in concern. She looked ready to faint any minute. "Serena." He whispered as he pushed himself up on his knees and grabbed her hands out of the air. Her eyes snapped down to him, her face as white as a sheet. "_Odango_." He chuckled as he gave her a quick peck on the forehead. "It'll be okay. I promise. I'll take all the blame. I mean, the door _is _open so that's already one point in our favor, right?"

Her brow furrowed in concern. "But--"

He shook his head, stopping her. "No. It'll be okay. She hates me, anyways."

"I never said I _hated _you." A voice announced, making him tense in surprise while Serena shrieked --loudly-- and instinctively pushed him away from her. He groaned as he fell backwards, hitting his head on the carpet soundly. He winced, rubbing the knot that was quickly forming, and lifted himself back up to see Mrs. Tsukino leaning against the doorframe, her arms folded across her chest. She rose an eyebrow slowly. "So, who wants to explain what's going on in here?" She abruptly flashed something out from behind her arms and both their eyes widened with horror as they spotted the photos from last night. "And, after that, why don't you tell me why your friend Makoto is holding a baby who looks a lot like Rose in this picture."

* * *

After what was, probably, the closest thing Thor and Valkyrie would ever have to a "heart to heart", he proceeded to drag her to the same restaurant they'd been at the day before for some breakfast. It might be only a little after four forty-five a.m. where they were, but he had been awake long enough waiting for the right time to call his son in Russia and she'd been awake just as long to, more than likely, start looking for passage on one of the fishing ships heading out, so… why delay the inevitable? They were awake now, why not eat now?

"Because I'm not hungry _now_." Valkyrie growled after he told her his reasoning.

He shrugged, one of his arms around her bicep as he walked behind her slightly, subtly leading her, and happily continued down the street the restaurant was on. She dug her heels into the cobblestone road the entire way but he knew it was more out of habit than anything else. He frowned slightly. '_Well, I hope its out of habit._' He shook his head. "You're my daughter. You'll be hungry the second you smell the food."

"Genes don't _work _that way." She huffed, plunking at his fingers. "Even _if _we had a biological connection still!" She finally got the last of his fingers off her arm only to find herself in front of the familiar white, peeling door. She shot a 'why me?' look up at the still-murky sky, making Thor chuckle.

"Just give it a second." He coaxed as he pulled open the door and placed a hand on her back to push her in. Instantly, her stomach began to growl and he laughed. "What did I tell you?"

She spun around to him, glaring as heat crept up her cheeks. "Shut it. I haven't ate more than three decent meals since I've been here. Of _course _I'm hungry."

He held his hands up placidly, still laughing. "Of course, of course." He shook his head slightly and closed the door behind him before smelling the air. "Mm. Does that smell like lobster to you? Do they even _serve _lobster for breakfast?" His head darted from left to right, looking for a good table. "I guess there's only one way to find out…"

She could only slap her forehead as she laughed at his eager expression and follow him to a table. And, twenty minutes later, she was still laughing but this time it was at his expression as he took the first bite of his meal --some seafood dish, which included bits of lobster. "Oh… good… Valhalla…" He murmured, staring at his plate in awe. His eyes trailed up to her in disbelief. "Why didn't we have this dish on Jupiter?"

She shrugged, biting her lip in an effort to not laugh. "We could have. We never ate _everything _at the Hall."

"Maybe not _you_," He corrected, pointing his fork at her, "But _I, _on the other hand, most certainly made an effort to. But _this_…" The awed look returned and he looked back down at his plate. "I never ate. It was _made _for the feasts at Valhalla!"

She rose a dubious eyebrow. "It can _not _be that good. I mean, really, for those mythical kings and heroes--" It was only seconds later that she was getting a forkful of the dish shoved into her mouth and proven _very _wrong. "Oh… my… _Wow_." She whispered, staring at him with wide eyes. "But--but it's just--"

He nodded as she trailed off. "_Exactly_."

"And the ship…" She murmured, pointing behind him. He turned his head to look out the window where a fishing vessel was docked, fishermen reeling nets back from the waters. "Did they just catch it like that? Right _here_?"

He turned back and looked down at his plate thoughtfully only to receive a shock when he didn't see it. He looked up in confusion only for his mouth to drop open as he saw his companion frantically trying to get as much of it into her mouth as she could at once. "W-wha-- _Valkyrie_! That was low!"

She ended up choking as she tried not to laugh. "All's …fair… in… family… and _food_." She wheezed as she pushed the plate back to him, now only a few bits and pieces she couldn't pick up with his fork left. She pounded on her chest a few times, gulping. "Need… coffee!" An unholy smirk stretched across his face as his eyes fell to her white mug. "_Thor_…" She warned, "Don't even _think _about it." The smirk widened and seconds later, his hands twitched. They both lunged at the mug and she missed it by mere milliseconds. She scowled and reached across the booth for her stolen mug. "Give it _back_!"

"Sorry, I can't." He commented mock-sadly as he held it out of her arm range. "A wise woman once told me that all's fair in family and food. _So_," He chuckled and promptly tipped the mug back and began to gulp. When every last drop of the coffee was drained, he set the mug down with a self-satisfied clank against the table. "I must follow her advice."

She glowered. "So that's how it's going to be, huh?"

He nodded in a mock-sadly manner. "Afraid so."

She stood up, placing her hands on the tabletop, and leaned toward him menacingly. "Then I think it's time for me to--" The sound of a cell phone ringing abruptly cut her off, causing her scowl to return deeper.

"Hold that threat." He chuckled as he dug into his pocket for the phone. He didn't even bother to look at the caller ID and flipped it open. "Howard Wilkins speaking." He rose an eyebrow as Valkyrie giggled, prompting her to cough and look away as she sat back down.

"_I just got a call from your ex-wife about you finding the Makoto-girl. It true?"_

"Hello to you too, Robert." He greeted his brother dryly, before chuckling. "But, yeah, Anya was right. I found her." He grinned as his companion looked back at him, raising an eyebrow. He mouthed 'brother' and she nodded, looking down at her meal. Seconds later, she was grabbing his mug of milk and chugging it. She opened an eye, smirking, and he scowled. 'I'm going to get you for that.' He mouthed again, only to earn a careless shrug from her.

"_packages-- Are you even listening to me?"_

He startled slightly; he'd forgotten about his brother. He winced. "Sorry. I'm watching the last of my breakfast being stolen away. What'd you say?"

"_I said, 'Well, thank God she's okay!' And '…I sense a 'but' coming. You should be on a plane but Anya said something about sending packages over?'"_

He sighed, running a hand over his face. "Yeah. There's a _big _'but' coming." He pointed down at the meal in front of Valkyrie, raising his eyebrows questioningly. She eyed him for a minute, making him think she would choose to stay here, before nodding and waving a waitress over. "Are you somewhere you can talk freely?" He asked into the phone, "I think I might need some more help from you."

"_I'm at home. Lay it on me." _

He chuckled as he pulled on his backpack. "I have a feeling you're going to regret that. But give me a second to get out of the door first. --We're at a restaurant." He explained as the man made a sound of confusion. He watched the waitress give Valkyrie a to-go container but before he could catch her attention, she was walking away.

"…_Out yet?"_

He huffed. "Almost. --Can you take care of the bill for me?" He asked Valkyrie as he took out a wad of cash. She looked up and accepted the money with a nod before continuing to pack her meal away. He took a deep breath of the cold ocean breeze as he walked out the door. "Well, Robert, here goes nothing…"

* * *

Ikuko rose her other eyebrow as neither of the teenagers answered right away. "Well? Anyone going to say anything?" She pursed her lip as their eyes remained fixed on the photos on her hand, prompting her to place it out of sight again. "Okay, how about we start with what you two were doing?" Her eyes slid to her daughter. "Serena?"

"M-mom…" The girl instantly squeaked as she fisted the bottom of her pajama shirt nervously. "We-- we were…" She looked at Darien helplessly as every one of the plausible excuses she'd been forming in her mind disappeared under the weight of the woman's stern stare.

"We were talking, Mrs. Tsukino." His answer was so smooth and offhanded she almost wanted to hit him in jealously. How had he learned to _do _that? In the face of her mother's accusing eyebrow, she was a stuttering mess while he was as calm and confident as they came. He even had the presence of mind to stand up and straighten out his clothes like they _had _been doing _nothing_! "I apologize if we disturbed anyone."

Ikuko's raised eyebrows never faltered. "Uh-huh. If you were talking, then what was that loud crash I heard?"

"It was a disagreement, truthfully. About the improperness of my being found in her room." He smiled, rubbing the back of his head to feel the knot slowly disappearing under the work of his heal powers. He kept the hand there a second longer in an effort to hide any evidence of the golden sparks. "I lost my balance and fell during it."

'_He's a miracle worker!_' Serena thought in amazement as she watched him in something akin to awe. He hadn't even _lied_, not technically at least, yet he still made the whole incident sound completely innocent! '_He so has to teach me how to do that…_'

Ikuko paused for a moment, her eyes sliding from her daughter to Darien, and back again. "Now, see," She began conversationally, "I want to believe you. I almost _do_, as a matter of fact, but there are just certain things a mother should never hear while a young man is in her teenage daughter's bedroom. The top one, most certainly, is 'My mother is about to catch us in bed together!'. Followed closely behind by 'We _are _guilty! Do you _not _remember what we were just doing!', am I right?" She tilted her head slightly as her audience paled. "But, Darien, you were correct, the door's open --that _is _one point in your favor. And I _did _come up in here last night, multiple times in fact, and know you were lying on top of the sheets. The _problem _I see, however, is that neither of you are _denying _you did something you shouldn't have. Something other than falling asleep together."

Serena instantly groaned, burying her face in her hands. "I have too big of a mouth!" She peeked through her fingers just in time to see Darien's lips twitch suspiciously, the amusement dancing in his eyes. She glared and she dropped her hands. "Be quiet, you!" She protested, "You have a big mouth too! That's what started this!"

He rose his eyebrows innocently. "I wasn't saying anything."

The glared deepened. "_Oh_. I know you, you were thinking it!" She turned to her mother with a wince as the woman cleared her throat. "M-mom… I--I…"

"I kissed her, Mrs. Tsukino." Darien interjected, "Just once." He coughed lightly. "You kind of interrupted us during the second…"

Ikuko looked at him blankly. "A kiss? That's it?" She looked at Serena curiously. "The comments? He having a big mouth…?"

"Well, I was worried about you finding us sleeping in my bed together." The blonde began with a wince. "I should have figured you came up sometime when Darien never went back down… And the 'we are guilty!' comment was because you'd just interrupted that second kiss." She blushed, biting her lip as she looked down at her lap. Now, how was she supposed to explain the big mouth when it was because he kept saying he was a Dark Kingdom general…?

"And I have a big mouth because I was teasing her." Darien supplied calmly, "I was trying to get her to shut me up with a kiss."

Serena giggled before freezing as her mother turned to her abruptly. She squeaked again. "M-mom?"

Ikuko's eyes squinted slightly. "That's it? Just a kiss and a half?"

The girl blinked in surprise. "Well, yeah. We woke up, talked some, he began teasing me, then we kissed."

"_So_, then, all those panicked glances were for …these." She pulled the photos of Makoto back out of her apron again and watched in bewilderment as they both winced almost simultaneously. "They were scattered down on the floor when I came up here the first time." She explained as her eyes darted from one teenager to another. "What are they? Why is Makoto holding Rose --_is _she Rose?

Serena felt her eyes watery involuntarily. "We--we _know _it's Rose but Makoto…"

"But Makoto… _what_?" Ikuko's eyes abruptly widened and she gasped as something finally dawned on her. '_If Serena was Sailor Moon, then her _four _friends were probably…_ _Oh, no. The day on the news…_'

"_**This is Tobin Hatsomo, still reporting live from Tokyo."**_** The news reporter began again as he appeared back on screen. Even he looked visibly shaken at what has just occurred. **_**"I'm sorry to report that a Sailor Senshi has fallen on this night. Sailor Jupiter, as she was called, has just been killed."**_

Her mouth opened and closed as she stared at her daughter in horror. "Se… Serena, Makoto… didn't… _move_, did she? That time… you weren't there…?" She could only watched, wide-eyed, as Serena abruptly choked on a sob, falling back down onto her bed in a flurry of tears and blonde hair. Milliseconds later, Darien followed her down and enveloped her form from view.

* * *

"_Hmm. Interesting predicament she found herself in. So, she has nothing to help her get out of Norway?"_

"Nothing, Robert." Thor answered his brother grimly, watching Valkyrie wander around aimlessly in the area of the park they were in. She stopped by a monument a few moments later and he watched her tilt her head slightly as he read it. "It's not fair for her," He told his brother, "She was just doing her duty, even when she was _tricked _into doing it, and then--then for _this _to happen, it seems…"

"_I understand."_ Robert interrupted quietly with his own sigh, _"What do you want me to do? See if Makoto was registered for a passport or anything? Send it to you if I can find one?"_

"She wouldn't have one." Thor supplied, "No matter where you looked."

A pause. _"You sure?" _

The redhead ran a hand over his face. "If Valerie was just up and kidnapped like we're assuming, then I doubt Makoto would have been allowed to leave the country."

"…_What's her original name again? V-vuh… something?"_

He chuckled. "Valkyrie, Robert, _Valkyrie_. I've told you this before. Valkyrie is Valerie, who was tricked into thinking she was Makoto."

On the other side of the world, Robert smiled dryly and shook his head. _"Yeah. How could I have forgotten?"_ He rolled his eyes, chuckling. _"Look, I don't pretend to understand any of this. I just know that you have these memories of this fantastical universe ten thousand years ago and that I don't have them and probably never will. But, you're my brother and this woman, Valkyrie, used to be your daughter so that automatically makes her my family too. And I'll do whatever I can to help my family. So, while it's going to take a while to comprehend that somehow one of Sakura's students was kidnapped in New York and made to believe she was, well, that Japanese student when she wasn't even remotely close to being it, I will. Eventually. Unfathomable or not, I'm trying here."_

"I know you are, and I appreciate it like you wouldn't believe." Thor watched Valkyrie squat down in front of what was obviously a sister and her little brother --perhaps five and three, respectively-- who were sitting down a few benches away from the monument. She talked with them for a few moments, nodding along the way, before pulling off the mesh backpack she was wearing and fishing something out of it. He sat up straighter as she pulled two apples out. "Actually, Robert, there is something else you might be able to do for me."

"_Anything."_

The siblings took the apples but still looked ready to cry. They were probably lost. "Valerie's husband, Neil Davis. Remember how I asked you to look for his phone number?"

"_Yeah."_

"I know it's only been a few days but do you think you can see if it's been listed? I mean, maybe the list hadn't been undated yet. He and their daughter have only been in Japan a few months…"

"_Howard, I don't think…"_ Robert began gently, before his brother interrupted him.

"I know, I know. Highly unlikely. But I just… want her to talk to them again." Thor smiled as a woman suddenly came running up to the children, worried exclamations pouring out of her lips. The two children cried out and went rushing to, shouting thanks to Valkyrie over their shoulders. And she watched the whole scene with a soft look in her eyes. "You should see her." He told his brother, "She hasn't given up but there's this _defeated_ look to her. I think… I think she expects to be trapped here forever. Or, pretty close to it." He paused, leaning away slightly as she looked in his direction. "Honestly, I'm afraid she'll strike herself with another storm in hopes that since it brought her to Norway, it could bring her _back _to Japan. Like some kind of twisted Wizard of Oz tornado."

"_That's just plain suicidal." _A pause. _"…Isn't it?" _

"That's the problem. I _don't _know." Thor replied, "The only reason I thought she'd still be alive after that attack is because she's Sailor _Jupiter_. It just wouldn't make sense for her to practically be the living embodiment of the planet, yet unable to survive being attacked with a Jovian storm. It was the same with being brought to Scandinavia. I figured the storm would probably seek out somewhere that felt like _home _to it and if Valkyrie was still alive, she'd been dragged along for the ride. But… what if that's all _wrong_? Part of me is like '_Okay. Fire up the storm and strike us. Maybe we'll get lucky and it'll get us to Japan._', while another part is like '_Yeah, right. Take a look around buddy. You're already as close to Jupiter on Earth as you're going to get. You'll get electrocuted and taken the grand total of ten feet_.', and the _other _part is like _'Do you really want to try it? What if it had just been dumb luck that it'd happened like this?'_, you know?"

Robert blinked slowly. _"…Sure."_ He shook his head. _"If you want my opinion, I wouldn't risk it at all. Because while you have proof she'd survive, where's the proof that __**you **__will? You may be the former King of Jupiter but you're not some mythical warrior with powers __**now**__."_

"Don't remind me." The redhead grumbled. "If I _had _powers maybe I'd be able to do something."

"_Doubt it." _His brother supplied pensively, _"She has powers but can't do anything. You two are confined by the law."_

"_She's _confining us by the law." Thor corrected, "If it was up to me, she'd been in a suitcase or something at the airport."

"_You can't get away with that anymore."_

A smile tugged on the Jovian's lips. "Yeah, yeah. Just a suggestion. You know what I mean."

Robert chuckled. _"Okay. So, I'll try to look for her husband's number again. But, what about any others? Like those girls she battled with?"_

"Hmm. I actually asked her if she'd like to contact them. I mean, she _has _their numbers after all, but she instantly shot me down. Rather viciously, might I add, but I have to admit she has a point. It's not exactly the kind of thing you can tell someone over the phone." He paused, groaning. "There's nothing I can do and it frustrates me like you wouldn't believe."

"_You'll figure out something. You always do."_

"I sure hope so." Thor whispered as his eyes wandered over to where Valkyrie had seated herself on the bench the two children had abandoned, the meal she'd saved open on her lap. "…All right, I'll let you go. Thank you for helping me with this." He added sincerely, "I probably won't even have a clue what to do if it hadn't been for you and finding that picture of Makoto…"

"_You're my brother." _The other man replied, before smirking. _"But I seriously racked in a few good favors with this, so I'd say we were even."_

Thor rolled his eyes. "I know, I know. Talk to you later."

Robert chuckled. "_All right. Bye. Give my regards to Valerie… Valkyrie… whoever she's going by, okay? Hopefully I can meet her soon._"

"Will do." Thor replied with his own chuckle before he snapped his phone closed. He watched his former-daughter for a moment longer before grinning and taking off his backpack to dig through it.

Valkyrie brought her plastic fork up to her mouth for another bit of her meal only for her hand to jerk in surprise as a flash of light hit her in the face. She blinked a few times, disoriented by the dots she saw. "Hey!" She sent Thor a glare as he put down his camera, chuckling.

He looked down at his viewfinder on the camera, only to laugh harder. The moment he had snapped the picture, she had been opening her mouth wider than what would _ever _be necessary for a bite --and she looked hungry, _very _hungry. "Ah. The woman who goes from angry, to sweet, to hungry all in a span of an hour. Truly amazing."

She blinked. "Sweet?"

He smiled as he sat beside her. "The children. Giving them those apples."

"Oh, that." She shrugged as she put down her fork. "Besides my clothes, the owners of that first youth hostel I came across have me that backpack filled with some food. I'm getting free meals now thanks to _you_--" She sent him a smirk, making him roll his eyes. "--and they'd gotten separated from their mom, so I figured why not give them what I had left in _some _kind of comfort?" She eyed the container on her lap thoughtfully. "I would have given them this, but I wasn't sure if they had ate breakfast. _Or _if they would have liked it."

"_I_ do." He commented as he plucked one of the sausages off her plate. She eyed him out the corner of her eye as he happily munch away on it. "Not as good as _my _breakfast." He added thoughtfully as he finished it, "But good enough." He sighed as he peeled his backpack back off his shoulder again and placed it on the bench beside him. "Do you think we could go back and get a picture at least?" He asked as he glanced down at his camera that he'd sat on his lap. "That's the kind of food that deserves a highlight in my blog. I could write for hours about that bite I had…"

The smirk she was wearing slipped off her face while the fork she was bringing to her mouth froze halfway there. "A… blog?" She groaned as she looked at him, trying not to give into her amusement. "A _blog_? Seriously, Thor, _you _have a _blog_?"

He chuckled as he swiped yet another sausage off her fork. "Yup. I'm not, as you so _eloquently _put it yesterday, a traveling bum. I actually _do _have a job." He shoved the sausage into his mouth and turned to his backpack. "I'll show you…"

"A _blog_?" She asked herself, shaking her head in disbelief. "That's---that's so… _weird_."

He released a triumphant "Ah-ha!" as he pulled a folded sheet of paper out of his bag before looking over at her curiously. "Why's that so weird?" He shook his head before she had a chance to answer and handed the paper over to her. "Here, see for yourself."

She unfolded it hesitantly, half afraid of what she'd find. What she _didn't _expect was a full-featured article about Thor or, rather, Howard Wilkins. "Danish-born Howard Wilkins knows what it means to really travel more than most." She read out loud, feeling her eyes widen by the second. "Now an accomplished photographer-- Well, I guess that explains the professional camera." She added with a wry smile. Thor chuckled as she continued to read. "--with a travel blog and numerous features in magazines across the globe, Howard discovered his love for traveling after a brief stint at Copenhagen University. When asked why he chose to travel abroad, Howard told us 'I wasn't satisfied with my life then. I was very restless; always wishing I could be somewhere else. After I dropped out of college, I wanted to see what else there was for me and I discovered, much to my delight, a whole world out there waiting to be explored'. As most would expect, Howard's voyages did not start out easily. After leaving Denmark with little money, he struggled to find ways to travel to his next destination. 'I offered to swap decks on ships, to shove coal in train engines, anything I could possibly think of; there was even a time I told a captain he could tie a dingy to the stern of his ship and I would happily hang on to it." She chuckled as her eyes darted to him to see him smiling. "'If I was told no, which happened far too many times, I never got discouraged. I would beg for money, sell anything I could on me, dance on the streets; and, when all else failed, I simply stowed away. I was determined that nothing would stop me from getting where I felt I need to go'." She stopped reading abruptly, putting the article down on her lap. "…That was all after you remembered the Silver Millennium, wasn't it? You were determined to go where you thought any of us would be."

"Part of it." He agreed before pausing thoughtfully. "After I started remembering the past, Artemis actually offered to fund my search. I almost took him up on the offer, too, before deciding it wouldn't be fair. He has a whole school of people to watch out for, he didn't need to waste money on me for something that might not even happen. And… and it wasn't fair to _me_, either. Because finding you and your siblings was something I had to do _myself_. I could never make proper amends if I was traveling first class and leaning back sipping martinis on Artemis's dime all the time." He paused briefly. "And, I know that's what your problem is with my help right now."

She tightened her grip on the piece of paper involuntarily, not meeting his eyes. "That so?"

"I've said it once, I'll say it again. We are a lot alike, Valkyrie." He commented as he stared at her. She refused to look up or away from the paper she was clutching. "Everything that has happened to you --from being kidnapped to living the lie Makoto was-- you consider all _your _fault. Even that storm bringing you here, probably. It's your fault, thus you need to be the one to fix it, right?" He asked rhetorically, nodding to himself. "I understand that mentality well. But, accepting my help doesn't mean you aren't making proper amends because, frankly, open your damn eyes and see that _none _of it was your fault."

Almost in an unconscious move of defiance, she did the exact opposite and squeezed her eyes shut. "I know it's not my fault. I'm accepting your help, aren't I?" She whispered.

"_Begrudgingly _accepting it." He corrected, "The only reason you are is because you know it's your only chance to get back. Yet, you still want to make it hard for us. You wouldn't call your parents, which is the easiest solution to everything. They could ship over your passports, your Ids, use their connections to make up some excuse for why no record of you entering Norway exists. They could have it all taken care of in a blink of an eye."

"If they _wanted _to." She hissed, glaring emerald eyes flashing up at him. "Need I remind you want I did to shame them so much?"

He shrugged. "You feel in love. That's all I see." He sighed. "Look, I don't want to get into another fight. I'm not going to contact your parents just like you asked. We'll figure out what to do once we can get a good lead on …anything, really." He shrugged half-heartedly. "Now we have my brother helping at least. He sent his regards." He added mildly, "He's going to see what he can do but…"

"But it doesn't look good." She finished, growling down at the article absently.

He sighed again, unable to help himself. "Look, Robert asked this, and I'm going to ask you again. Don't you think you should contact Crown-Princess--"

"_No_." She snapped, "I already told you no when we were waiting for our food at the restaurant. Think about it, will you? What the hell do you think Serenity --_any _of them-- would do when I called them up, saying I'd survived being electrocuted and somehow made my way to Norway in the storm? And, hey, guess what! My name's not really Makoto, but Valerie! And I'm in my twenties and an American with a husband and daughter…" She glowered. "Yeah, Thor, that'll go over real well. They saw me _die_. They'd think I was playing some sick game with them. I won't contact them until I'm in Tokyo and it'll be in _person._"

He winced a bit. "All right, all right. I was just making sure…"

She snorted but otherwise remained silent. A few moments later, however, she abruptly blinked. "You know, you never really answered my question yesterday. How'd you find out about Rose and Neil, and how they were in Tokyo?" Her eyes flashed up to her former father suspiciously. "I can get Ms. Haruna's boyfriend being your brother --no matter how weird that is-- and having that picture of me but not how you could have connected Neil and Rose to me--" She frowned. "--her-- _whatever_." She shook her head and pinned the man with a glare. "So, how did you?"

Thor scratched the back of his head in thought. "Well, after Robert told me who you were and where you went to school, I did a little research of my own. Once I found your address in the directory, I called in a favor to get a copy of the security tapes of your building a few weeks before you 'died'. I went through about a half dozen tapes before I got a few good, solid images of you to confirm that you _did _live there. After that, I went over every tape you were in trying to find anything out. Mostly they just told me you were in regular contact with Crown-Princess Serenity and Mercury along with Mars occasionally. Which, you know, I kinda already figured because of the battles." He shrugged. "It was by complete chance that I spotted Nephrite. I'd seen him a few times in some of the tapes and thought he looked kind of familiar but I just blew it off. A lot of people can see familiar when you lead the life I do." He shook his head. "It wasn't until I spotted a decent enough picture to him that I got enough incentive to take a still frame of him and that child he was always with. I cleaned it up a bit and zoomed in --like I did with that necklace of yours-- and realized he was General Nephrite and that the girl looked a lot like a younger you." He leaned back slightly, squinting his eyes in thought. "Called in another favor to get information on who they were --and what apartment they lived on, as well as which one you did." He grinned. "Then I googled his name."

She, however, didn't smile at another display of an un-Thor like quality. "That's when you found about my mom's shameful DA race?"

He instantly shook his head. "No, he wasn't mentioned in any of that. Very surprisingly, I might add. I actually found him on the Academy's website. Go figure, huh?" He smiled wryly. "I haven't kept in frequent contact with Artemis or anyone there --and, honestly, if I was smart, I _should _have because then I would have known when you were found-- but there Nephrite was. A picture of him, too." His lips twisted. "It actually didn't tell me much, _except_ that it mentioned he'd attended university in New York. Googles of him and New York didn't pay off to much, though, so I had to call in another favor and I was eventually led to the marriage license of Neil Davis to one Valerie Edwards from the State of New York." He nodded his head. "I figured it was you --the _Val _of that name and Valkyrie was a big hint-- but couldn't be sure. Because, while I knew the two of you had that liaison going on in the Silver Millennium, I didn't know how deep it ran. I had no clue if you cared about each other enough to find each other again and actually get married."

She smiled softly, unable to help herself. "We do."

"I figured _that _much out." He shot off with a grin. She instantly rolled her eyes. "Well, it turned out that a google of you, Miss Valerie Edwards, was the most fruitful." His lips pressed into a thin line. "The biggest hit was the DA run, unfortunately, but I plowed through it all until I found mentions of awards you'd earned or events you and your parents attended. Eventually, I was just so fascinated that I did that so-called 'full-out invasion' of your life and learned pretty much everything from what hospital you were born on to when you fled the country with Nephrite." He shrugged lightly. "I lost track of you after the record of Rose's birth in Glasgow. Until Makoto showed up in Japan, that is. …I knew something was wrong for you to suddenly leave one life for another without your husband and daughter. But I knew were still Sailor Jupiter, _Valkyrie_, no matter what name you were going as now and that was enough for me. And I knew I had to find you."

She looked down at her lap, plucking the edges of the article distractedly. "….How long have you been looking for me?" She whispered, "How _did _you find me, in the first place?"

"Luck." He uttered, "Sheer and total luck. The second I saw the battle, I called my brother for any information he could give me about Sailor Jupiter. He asked why, of course, so I have him a short history lesson on how you used to be my daughter --he knows about the Silver Millennium and my search for you and your siblings. He doesn't have any memories but he stills believes me." He elaborated before shaking his head, "Let's see. After he knew you were kind of family, he sent me file after file of captured Senshi footage --professional and any amateur stuff he could get his hands on-- and once I gave him this brief description of what you looked like as a civilian, he sent me that picture of you at the mall. I wasn't even in Russia for another day before I was on a plane to Sweden." He shrugged. "It had been a blind shot, you could have been in any of the Nordic countries, but I figured you'd be more likely to end up in either Norway or Sweden because they have the most geographically-relative features to where the Hall we lived was. That, and the languages were the closest to Jovian. With the exception of Icelandic, of course." He frowned up at the sky. "In another testament to how similar we are, I had the same thought as you. That, without a passport, you'd try to get to the closest person of actual good use --Artemis --and to get to him, it'd probably involve a ship. Thus, armed with one of those security footage stills, I hit all the seaport towns I could. Looked in youth hostels, hospitals, even a few jails, to be honest." He chuckled at her sour look. "Don't be like that. You admitted to beating up that guy that was molesting you after all. If you'd been caught you probably _would _have been sent to jail."

She rose an eyebrow but couldn't decide whether to be offended or just amused. He _did _speak the truth.

He shook his head with another chuckle. "I spanned about half the Swedish coast before I hit a stroke of luck. I showed your picture to a captain and had my story of you being my runaway daughter going--" She scowled but he ignored the look easily. "--and the captain instantly went into this spiel about how he should have take you up on your offer because his lookout had been drunk the entire voyage and they'd almost crashed into something or other as a result. Long story short, I got him to point me in the right direction. I've been on your trail for about a week or so, I'd gather." He scowled as well. "I just wish you would have stayed in one place for more than a day or two. I'd have made both our lives much easier."

"Huh. Sure." She rolled her eyes as she finally passed over the article. "Like I did it on purpose."

"I didn't say you did." Thor retorted calmly as he accepted the article. He frowned down at it seconds later. "Hey, you crinkled it! A fold is one thing, but _crinkles_?"

She rose an eyebrow, glancing down to see her plucking _had _crinkled it a bit. She shrugged briefly as she looked back up at him. "So?"

"S-_so_?" He sputtered, "This was the only copy I had left! Now how else am I supposed to prove to everyone that I'm not some traveling bum? Now it looks like it _has _been traveling with a bum!"

She blinked, tilting her head to the side. "Was that a joke --or are you serious?"

He scowled. "Serious. …Kind of." He amended with a smirk. He chuckled as she rolled her eyes. "What? Is it a crime to be proud of myself? The article proves I finally got to do what I wanted."

"Wanted? What do you mean?"

He waved his hand distractedly as he pulled his backpack back over to return the article. "Photography." He stopped, looking back at her. "Well, I suppose back in the Silver Millennium, it would have been painting." His nose crinkled. "Except I found I had no talent for that."

Her brow furrowed. "You… wanted to paint? I never knew that. You were so… so…"

"Thor?" He suggested dryly, prompting her to laugh and nod. He shrugged with his own grin. "I know what you mean. I was never the type to stop and look up at the sky dreamily but I there were times I wanted to. Wish I could forgo everything for a day out in the woods for no good reason. Or there'd be times I crested of a hill and I'd look at the view and wish I could capture it. But it'd not like I ever told anyone." He added with a half-hearted shrug. "Except for your mother, of course."

"…Mother?" She whispered.

His eyes skid away from hers uncomfortably. "Yeah. Your mother."

She bit her lip. She and Thor had never had a conversation about her mother and what she meant to him and she doubted that she and Howard Wilkins would either. She sighed as she looked down at her lap. "That footage you used to find me, do you still have it on your laptop?"

He blinked in surprise. "Sure. Why?"

She smiled grimly as she passed him her forgotten and now-cold breakfast. "I want to watch myself die."

* * *

"Shh. It's okay, Serena." Darien whispered into the blonde hair, trying to calm her tears. The instant before she had crumpled against the bed, he knew Mrs. Tsukino had struck a nerve. He grimaced as he looked up to the shell-shocked mother. She hadn't meant to but that still didn't change the fact she'd implied it was Serena's fault Jupiter had died that day… "Remember what I said." He continued in that same low tone, "It wasn't your fault. It was just an accident, okay? A horrible one, but still an accident."

She nodded against his chest but he couldn't tell if she'd said anything through all her tears and gasping breaths. She sniffled a few times as she buried herself further into his T shirt, reminding him all too well of how she had tried to do the same thing when they'd watched the news footage of Jupiter's death. He closed his eyes, wishing everything would just go away so Serena could be at peace again.

Ikuko watched the two of them, paling and feeling increasingly useless as each second ticked by. "S-Serena?" She whispered slowly. She edged closer to the two before flinching in surprise as Darien's eyes snapped open and fixed on her unblinkingly. '_Where… where those gold for a second?_' She grimaced. That feeling was coming back; the one she'd had at the hospital. Darien was the big, bad danger all over again… "D-Darien." She cleared her throat. "Why don't you go downstairs? I came up here to tell the two of you breakfast would be done soon." She tried to smile. "I'm making pancakes since Rose said she hasn't had them for awhile." She frowned distractedly. "There was something in there about her mother, too." She stopped, freezing, as Serena abruptly wailed and clung to Darien. She could literally see her fingernails digging into the man's shoulder. She bit her lip as the memory of the photo fled back to her mind. "Sweetie?"

Darien grimaced as he turned his attention back to the top of Serena's head. "Odango." He said softly as he smothered her bangs away from her forehead. She kept her attention focused on a spot on his chest, sniffling and gasping for air, her face beet red. He closed his eyes again as he pressed his lips against her forehead. "You can't do this to yourself. You know it's not your fault."

Ikuko gasped at his words. "Oh, sweetie. I didn't mean to… Of _course _it wasn't your fault."

"I--I know." The blonde hiccupped as she looked up, mustering a watery smile. "I just… not done grieving I guess." She looked up at Darien abruptly. "Does… does it ever go away?" She whispered, "That feeling?"

He smiled sadly. "I'm not the best person to ask that. My situation was… unique." He paused as she frowned, chewing on her lip. "But, do you remember what you did for me out there by the ocean? When you had me think of one of my pictures with my parents?"

She nodded slowly, a soft smile playing on her lips even as she sniffled a few more times. "Yeah. You said you finally felt loved by them."

He matched her smile. "That's just want you need to do to when things like this come up. You need to think of Makoto. Of the memories about her, pictures, everything. And you'll know that she had a good life; people who cared about her, loved her, and she them."

She bit her lip. "But what about… _you know_?" She gestured toward her eyes to the pictures still numbly hanging from her mother's hands.

His lips pursed into a thin line as his eyes wandered over to her mother as well. "We'll find out. Today. We just need to get through breakfast first." His eyes flashed back to her as he smiled. "So, how about it? You think you can make it downstairs now?"

"We forgot about Rose last night." She commented instead of answering.

He instantly grimaced as he looked back toward her mother, who was watching them silently. "I'm truly sorry about that too, Mrs. Tsukino. I had no intention of practically dumping Rose on you and your husband. Is--is there anything I can do to make it up to you? I was only watching her as a favor for a …friend…"

Serena's wince went unseen as he halted over the word. She knew she would have too, in his position.

Darien shook his head. "But, I will be glad to pay you for your troubles. It would be the least I could do…"

"Nonsense." Ikuko waved a careless hand, even as her attention remained fixed on the young man's hands. They'd been fiddling with the strap of her daughter's shirt the entire time they'd been talking… It wasn't as if she was _paranoid _or anything but, he certainly wouldn't take advantage of her daughter while she was grieving, right? She tried to shake herself from those kinds of thoughts but they still stayed right on the edge of her mind. She offered him a wane smile. "She was a little angel. I've dealt with worse from my own children and I certainly don't get paid for _that_."

"_Mom!"_ Serena instantly choked, aghast, as she sat up ramrod straight in Darien's embrace. Her eyes darted to him frantically. Was her mother trying to make her sound like a rotten daughter in front of her-- her… Darien!?

The purple-haired woman giggled girlishly. "Sorry, dear, but it's true. Besides, if he knows you as well as I think, he's already well acquainted with your behavior and--" She smiled mischievously. "--by the way he didn't even flinch as you just screamed, your temperament as well. Because, knowing you, that loud thud was you _pushing _him off the bed, right?"

"M-mom!"

Unable to help himself after the emotion roller coaster he had been on that morning, Darien burst out into laughter at the easy atmosphere. "S-sorry." He gasped out between chuckles as he caught sight of the blonde's offended look, "You have to admit it's kind of funny."

"It--it is not!"

"Then why did I just hear a giggle crack that sentence?" He teased, poking her in the side. He grinned, parting in humor, mostly in relief at how she seemed to be cheering up. "Come on, Odango. I'm not going to be suddenly horrified or scared away by you." His eyes darted up to her head. "It's your Bride of Frankenstein's hair that'll scare me away, not you."

She giggled, batting away his hand. "Like your bad breath is going to scare me away?"

He frowned self-consciously, leaning away a little. "I was kidding about the Bride of Frankenstein hair."

"Oh." She giggled as she climb back up to her feet. "Well, sorry, but I wasn't kidding about your breath." She waved a hand in front of her face, her nose crinkling. "Phew!"

"Odango--!" He laughed as he stood back up as well.

"I'm going to take all this as a 'yes, we will be done to join everyone for breakfast shortly'." Ikuko giggled genuinely as both of them looked at her in surprise --they'd forgotten about her, again. "We will be eating in the dining room since we have guests and the kitchen will be too crowded, okay?" She paused, smiling slightly. "Darien, the bathroom is right down the hall; you can freshen up in there. There should be a pack of new toothbrushes on the second shelf in the medicine cabinet, feel free to us one."

Serena giggled, sending her friend a 'told you so' look. He rolled his eyes but didn't bother stopping the grin he could feel unfurling, wider than his last.

"Now," Ikuko continued, "would you care for a change of clothes while you're at it? Yours looked like they've been through war." She eyed his frame, squinting. "My husband is a tad less …muscular than you, but I'm sure we could find something that would fit."

"I've already imposed more than--" He began, shaking his head, before being cut off by Serena.

"Just say yes. I already took a shower last night so it'll be free." She yawned as she pulled her arms over her head in a stretch.

Ikuko pursed her lips tightly as she watched Darien's eyes rivet toward her daughter's exposed stomach. He was getting an eye full as it was with her tight shirt and loose pajama pants. The cartoons bunnies certainly didn't change the fact a _teenage girl _was wearing them… She frowned as all those thoughts flooded back into her mind. But, Darien _was _a gentleman, wasn't he? Certainly nothing happened when the two of them had gone out to the ocean to talk about his parents. Though, she and Kenji _had _been watching them in the car and saw how comfortable they'd looked together. Then, there had been that kiss on the doorstep…

Oblivious to the attention her absent actions caused, the blonde began to walk toward her closet. "And hurry up about it," She added belatedly, "because you'll need to have Rose home before her father has a heart attack once he realizes _you _aren't home." She paused, her wince going unseen by her mother as she turned back around to face Darien. "And, you know, you, uh, won't have time for a shower or anything later because …of, um, how much you two like to talk?" She offered, her brow crinkled.

He rose an eyebrow. She was a horrible liar, but was also right. They needed to hurry so they would catch Neil off guards. "Then, thank you Mrs. Tsukino." He said graciously as his gaze lifted back to the housewife. She blinked, startled out of her concerns. "A shower and change of clothes would be well appreciated."

She forced herself to smile. "Right. Well, come on, we should leave Serena alone to get dressed…"

* * *

Twenty minutes later, Serena was sitting down at the dinning room table, newly dressed for the day and waiting for breakfast. '_And undergoing an interrogation._' Her thoughts grumbled almost bitterly. Her eyes lifted up from the table to watch her mother come out the kitchen door, carrying a stack of plates.

"Now, Serena," The woman began as she stopped briefly next to the girl's chair. "I just want an honest answer. That's all."

"_No_, Mom." Serena answered _again _--it was the hundredth time, she was sure-- "A kiss and a half. That's it. That's all that happened between Darien and I."

"I just want you to be safe." Ikuko whispered as she bit her lip, "Your grieving the loss of your friend and it's not uncommon for a boy to take …advantage… of that." She grimaced slightly as she was pinned with a sudden scowl.

"Darien didn't do anything. He would _never_ do anything like that, okay? He's always trying to help me. _Always_." The blonde finished in a whisper as she turned back to stare ahead at the wall. "And I know he always will, too."

"Sweetie…" The housewife stopped, sighing. "Okay." She shook her head lightly as she finally placed the stack on the table. "Are you feeling better now, at least?"

"Sure." The blonde answered calmly, "Darien always knows what to say." She promptly picked up her glass of orange juice for a long drink, missing how her mother had pursed her lips tightly before going back to her work. Seconds later, however, the blonde _didn't _miss the image of Darien walking down the last few steps of the stairs stiffly. She snorted into her glass, trying not to laugh.

Her mother looked up, frowning in concern. "Please slow down, dear. You don't want to choke."

She coughed as she sat the glass back down quickly. "Right." She rose an eyebrow at Darien as he hovered near the doorway and rubbed the back of his neck, looking unsure of what to do. "You can come in, you know."

"Hmm?" Ikuko looked up from where she was sitting a plate down in front of her daughter and offered the young man a smile as she finally spotted him. "Go ahead and sit down, Darien. The others should be in any minute."

"Actually, I was wondering where Rose was?" He asked with a sheepish smile, "I haven't seen her anywhere…"

"She's outside with my dad and brother." Serena answered as she grabbed a set of silverware and placed it next to her plate. "They're showing her… something." She shrugged halfheartedly as she looked back up at him. "I don't know what. They were already out there by the time I came down."

"Oh. All right."

Her grin of amusement faded as she watched him continue to stand there nervously, his eyes darting to her mother every few seconds. '_Don't tell me she gave him an interrogation too…_' She bit her lip. "Oh, come on already! Come sit down." She patted the seat next to her, giving him a reassuring smile.

He seemed to have caught it to what she was trying to do because he nodded, just barely, and began moving. She instantly tried to muffled her giggles at his rigid movements behind a hand before squeaking in surprise as she was pinched in the side as he sat down. "Don't _do _that." She hissed at him.

"Do what, dear?"

Her eyes flashed up at her mother in surprise as the woman rose a calm eyebrow. "I, uh… Nothing." She finally mumbled, lifting up her glass for another sip of juice.

"Thank you, again, Mrs. Tsukino." Darien interjected quickly. Ikuko looked over at him, blinking. "For allowing me to borrow these clothes."

The woman instantly smiled sheepishly. "It's just fine. I'm afraid I have to apologize for how tight them fit, however." She winced. "I did not think they would be so…"

Serena coughed again in an effort to hide her giggles as she saw the quick grimace forming on her friend's face before it disappeared. "It's fine, Mrs. Tsukino." He told the older woman easily, "I am just glad to have something clean to wear."

"I don't think it counts as clean if it's been in the back of the closest for twenty years." The blonde mumbled under her breath before yelping silently as she was pinched again. She swiftly glared at Darien's innocent face.

"If you are sure…" Ikuko began hesitantly, not hearing her eldest's comment, as she looked up from where she was continuing to lay out the plates and silverware.

"I am." He responded, watching in amusement as Serena stuck her tongue out at him. He rose a calm eyebrow and curiously enough she blushed and turned back to her orange juice in reply. "Would you like any help, Mrs. Tsukino?" He asked as he refocused back on the housewife, "Setting up the table? Or bringing anything in?"

"No, no. You're our guest." Ikuko smiled before her eyes slid over the table. "It looks like we're almost done ready, anyways." She nodded to herself. "I'll just be in the kitchen in case either of you want my attention."

Serena's brow creased together as she watched the woman disappear through the flapping door before she instantly turning on Darien. "All right. What'd she say to you?"

He sighed and began tugging at his borrow pants restlessly. "Nothing. Let's just say I was going down the steps during what sounded like the middle of your cross-examination of what happened this morning and my… honor, to be mild about it. I went back upstairs to give you two some privacy."

She instantly grimaced. "I'm sorry you had to hear that. She just…"

He smiled sardonically. "I know. I'm a guy who was in your bedroom all night. I understand her concern well." His eyes slid to hers. "Thanks, though. For sticking up for me."

She blinked. "Well, why wouldn't I? You would never take advantage of me." She stopped, a grin unfurling. Seconds later she leaned toward him, as if sharing a second. "You already had me at your mercy and didn't do anything, remember? Your apartment, practically naked…"

"And hurt." He added, "Of course I wouldn't do anything while you were injured. _That _is taking advantage of someone."

She instantly quirked an eyebrow. "So you're saying you would if I hadn't have been hurt?"

His brow creased. "Then? No. You were Odango. Cute, but still overwhelming annoying most days."

"Now?"

His eyes slid to her. "Do you really want me to answer that question honestly with your mother so close?"

Her eyes narrowed. "It depends."

He finally smirked. "I wouldn't test it." He grimaced suddenly and tugged down the knees of his pants. "I'm already on her passive aggressive side. The last thing I need is for that passiveness to disappear if she happens to overhear how I answer you."

She gaped, her face flaming at his insinuation. "P-pervert!" She hissed as she slapped his shoulder. Her brow furrowed even as he laughed. "Wait. Passive aggression, what do you mean?"

He continued to chuckle. "She's like your father in that aspect, it seems." At the blonde's blank look, he stopped tugging. "I don't think anyone ever told you but, at the hospital while you were still unconscious, Doctor Vigil insinuated that your parents --or, rather, mostly your father-- might have been the ones to hurt you. That's when I jumped in with the youma story, so your parents wouldn't be blamed, but you're father still felt the insult. After Vigil suggested only family be in the room while he diagnosed you, your father flat-out allowed Motoki and I to stay in the room. Thus, insulting Vigil in a roundabout way."

"Whoa." She whispered.

He nodded slightly. "Your mother is the same. She barely said a word to me upstairs while we were looking for clothes. Then she found _these_ and her smile was almost blinding." He grimaced as he turned his attention back to his borrowed pants. He leaned toward her slightly. "I really do appreciate having something clean to wear but, to be honest, I think I'm wearing the trousers from Hell right now."

She snorted, slapping a hand over her mouth in a vain attempt to contain her giggles.

He grinned at her reaction. "Oh, wait. That's not all, though." He pulled his sweater away from his body slightly. "_This_ is personal Hades' sweater, I'm sure of it. I swear, the only thing saving me from itching to death is the fact I put my undershirt back on."

She giggled before sobering up. "_So_," She drawled with a sudden frown. "you're saying I wasn't imaging that look she shot you when she realized you were sitting down _next _to me? And the double meaning in that 'I'll just be in the kitchen in case either of you want my attention'. She wants to check up on us-- err, you?"

"Seems that way." He heaved a frustrated sigh as he went back to tugging the pants down at the thighs.

She giggled as she watched him. "Maybe she really _does _hate you." She leaned back slightly, taking in the image of his ugly, green and brown wool sweater --she was pretty sure it had been a Christmas present her father had gotten last year-- and the high-water black pants she'd couldn't fathom _what _fabric they were made of. They just looked _very _old --and _much _too small. "This is _definitely _how she's getting back at you." She giggled again as he stopped tugging, giving her a sour look. "She's torturing you with making your ankles cold!"

He groaned. "Not another word, Odango. _Please_."

"This is going to destroy that suave image of yours when we go to Neil's, you know." She commented with a grin, unable to stop teasing the teaser now that she had the opportunity. "Wait until everyone in your apartment building gets a look at you with your…" She bit her lip, her eyes twinkling. "well, wardrobe malfunction to be nice about it." He laughed despite himself and her smile widened. "Then there'll be me right alongside you with my Frankenstein Bride's hair."

He grinned as he reached over to tug at the side-braid she had put her hair in. "Nah. You'll only help my image."

She blushed at the offhanded compliment before blinking as he continued to stare at her, his brow furrowing deeper by the second. "What?" She asked, squirming self-consciously.

"There's something different about you today." He mused before snapping his fingers as realization struck him. "You aren't wearing white. You always wear white somewhere."

She looked at him blankly. "Of course I do. My school uniform blouse, remember?"

"Even when you're out of uniform." He clarified as his eyes narrowed slightly. "You haven't worn it nearly as much as you used to since you stopped being Sailor Moon, truthfully."

Her eyebrows rose sharply. "How do you _know _these things? Even I haven't noticed that and _I'm _the one that chooses what to wear!" She looked down curiously, reminding herself what she was wearing. "Well, it looks like it's a gold and blue day." She gasped and her head snapped up to look at her friend in unease. "Gold, Darien, _gold_. Like your eyes and the sword! I didn't even know I _owned _anything with gold on it!"

His eyes darkened as they fell down to the outfit she was wearing. A pair of gray jeans with a giant gold rose intertwining around itself up from her right knee up her thigh, and a dark blue off-the-shoulder sweat shirt. "My colors." He whispered slowly, almost in a trance. Before he knew what was happening, his hands were sliding over the skin exposed by the sides of her throat and he was leaning forward…

"Dare-Dare! Pwedy lady!"

He jerked in surprise, his hands falling away guiltily, and whirled around to the doorway to see Rose speeding toward him with a wide grin stretching across her face. He chanced a glance over at Serena to see her looking as disoriented as he felt before she abruptly turned down to her plate, blinking.

He looked down as he felt tugging on his pant leg. Rose glanced between him and Serena, her brow furrowed curiously. '_Physic empathy must be working_.' He mused to himself, '_At least she looks as confused as we feel._' "Good morning, Rosie-Posie." He greeted with a smile as he picked her up and placed her on his lap. "Where have you been hiding?"

Rose instantly giggled and looked up at him with a wide smile. "No 'ide! Rose out-'ide with pwetty lady Dada and 'unny boy! 'ook at birdie! And--and pwetty lady Mama 'ake moo-fin! Rose ate two! And then 'unny boy--"

"Shingo." The aforementioned "funny boy" grumbled as he walked into the room and sat in the chair across from his sister.

"--s'eep on dofa and Rose s'eep in 'unny boy 'ed! And," The toddler took a deep breath to begin more but Darien quickly stopped her, laughing.

"Easy there, Rose." He chuckled. "I haven't had my morning coffee yet."

"I'll get it." Serena offered with a giggle as she pushed her chair out and stood, "I know how you like it."

He watched her for a minute, studying the strange look in her eyes. Realization dawned on his seconds later; she was trying to apologize for her mother's lack of faith in him. He nodded and mouthed a grateful 'thank you' and watched her smile and disappear out of sight before turning his attention back to Rose. "So, did you thank Shingo for giving up his bed for you to sleep in last night?"

Her eyes instantly widened and she turned back to Shingo, who looked at her in horror. "No! I can only handle so many hugs in the morning!" He protested, waving his hands as if to ward off the girl. She only tilted her head in his direction curiously. "My mom's bad enough!"

* * *

Serena hummed a wordless tone under her breath as she headed straight for the coffee maker on the counter next to the sink. Ikuko followed her trek in confusion as she flipped a pancake. "What are you doing, dear? You don't drink coffee. You said it tastes like dirt."

"I don't, and it does." The blonde agreed with a smile, "But Darien likes it."

"Oh." The housewife watched her daughter pull a brown and green mug out of the cupboard, detachedly remembering it was one of the blonde's favorites, before the black liquid was poured inside. "Do you know how Darien likes his coffee? Sugar, cream?"

"Neither." Serena replied matter-of-factually, "For his first cup, he likes it straight black. It helps him wake up faster. It's only for his later cups that he adds cream. Sometimes sugar too when he's in a bad mood; he thinks he deserves a good dose of something unhealthy." She giggled to herself, shaking her head.

"That's …rather detailed." Ikuko replied slowly as she moved the pancake to the waiting stack.

"I guess so." The younger female responded with a shrug, "I've seen him order enough at the arcade to know." She eyed the stack next to her mother's elbow. "Do you need help carrying anything out? Since I'm in here already and all?"

"Hmm?" The purple-haired woman shook herself out of her stupor, smiling gently. "Oh. No, that's alright. You can go ahead and go back to the dining room."

"All right." She chirped before disappearing out the door.

Ikuko's uneasy eyes followed her all the way out before they hardened in determination. Minutes later, her next pancake was being flipped onto its other side roughly.

* * *

"and t'en the 'ony say Rose, do 'ou no the 'umpkin man?'"

Serena giggled at the scene she walked back in on. There was Rose still sitting on Darien's lap, her hands moving around wildly and using a childish deep voice, obviously narrating some kind of story. Darien was nodding along, looking half-asleep but attentive. "Are you sure you don't mean the 'muffin-man?'. He's from a nursery rhyme." He asked the little girl.

She instantly frowned. "No! _My _'eam Dare-Dare!"

"Okay, okay." He conceded with a laugh, "It was your dream, not mine. The pony asked for the pumpkin man."

"Here, Darien." The blonde finally interrupted with a giggle, "I think you might appreciate this."

He looked up, grinning as he saw mug she was offering him. "I knew I liked you for a reason." He teased.

The blush was instantaneous on her face as she sat back down beside him. Shingo watched the two of them, his head volleying back and forth his sister's blush and the man's darting eyes as he looked at her every few seconds. '_No way…_' His suspicions were confirmed as Serena caught Darien looking at her and they both looked away but not without blushing slightly. His eyes widened before an unholy smile crossed his face; he wouldn't be a good little brother if he didn't tease his sister mercilessly right that second. "So, Serena, how long have you been in love with Dar-- _ow!_" He cried out, bending down and rubbing his shin. "Dad!" He complained as he turned to the man as he walked in with his morning paper. "Serena kicked me!"

Kenji heaved a long suffering sigh as he placed the paper next to his plate at the head of the table. "Serena, don't kick your brother."

She glared at the boy murderously. "I wouldn't of had to if he hadn't been such a little creep!"

He returned the glare. "Oh, please. You're just mad because I embarrassed you in front of Darien! _HA!_" He cheered triumphantly as a fire-engine red blush instantly traveled over her skin. "I _knew _it! Serena and Darien sitting in a tree! First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes --_ow!_ _**Mom**__!_" He tried this time, "Serena kicked me again!"

"Children!" Ikuko admonished as she stepped into the room, "We have guests! Behave yourselves!" Before anyone had a chance to say anything, she whirled on her husband. "Kenji, I need to speak with you. Now." She disappeared back into the kitchen without another word.

"O-okay." The brunette man uttered, scratching his head in bewilderment at his wife's attitude. He offered Darien a sunny smile as he stopped beside him and dropped a hand onto his shoulder friendly. "Good morning, Darien. It's nice to have you and Rose here. We don't get guests for breakfast often." He chuckled as his eyes slid to the still-bickering siblings. "You can probably guess why."

The younger man shared the chuckle. "I can. But, that's what makes a home a home." He supplied wistfully.

"You're a brave man." He continued to chuckle before the cry of _"Kenji!_" caused the smile to slip off his face. "I better go see what I've done now." He grimaced as he patted Darien's shoulder again before stopping short. He lifted up his glasses curiously and squinted. "I thought I donated that horrible sweater to the secondhand store last March. It itched like you wouldn't believe."

Darien's mental groan was instantaneous as Kenji shrugged, giving up on trying to remember, and walked away. He knew it; Mrs. Tsukino _did _have it out for him. The itchy, reject sweater.

"_Kenji! I'm telling you something is going _on _with them! It took me over a _year _to learn how you liked your coffee! __**After **__we were already married!"_

He grimaced at the hiss that floated up to his ears. Mrs. Tsukino _really_ had it out for him. He glanced around to see Rose humming to herself and Shingo pouring himself a glass of orange juice from the pitcher near the center of the table; both were oblivious to the conversation taking place in the kitchen.

"_Serena isn't even dating Darien." _Ikuko continued, "_She practically hated him until last month, why can't you see how strange this picture is!?"_

He turned his attention to Serena as she groaned, slumping down in her seat. He opened his mouth to comment about Ikuko's comments before being cut off by Rose turning to Serena abruptly. "Pwedy lady?"

"_I really don't see anything wrong with it, honey. They're friends."_

The blonde blinked before smiling down at the girl gently. "My name is Serena, sweetie. You don't have to keep calling me pretty lady."

"Because you're not even close to being pretty." Shingo added with an infuriating grin.

"_Okay, friends. So how do you explain what we saw from the porch that night? Do friends kiss each other like that normally? They even admitted to kissing this morning, too!"_

A pause. _"So… maybe there a little more than just friends?"_

"Sir-we-na." The blonde ignored her little brother and parents in favor of listening to Rose intently as she pronounced her name slowly, looking unsure.

She expelled the toddler's fear with a happy exclamation of "That's perfect!". She grinned as Rose beamed with no small about of pride.

"_You haven't been seeing what I've been seeing all morning!" _Ikuko insisted quietly, _"Darien is completely overbearing Serena's presence! She'll begin to say something, only for him to cut her off seconds later! Or for her to stop and look at him, like she needs his __**approval**__!"_

"_Well…"_

Darien grimaced as he looked at Serena. Had that really been happening? He flinched after a moment as he replayed the entire morning in his mind. It _had_. He'd thought he was just trying to help her, giving her mother answers when she couldn't come up with one, but maybe that hadn't been the _smartest_ thing to do…

"Sir-we-na." Rose pronounced slowly again before nodding to herself. "Did Dare-Dare show Mama?"

"_And you know what she told me? 'Darien always knows what to say'. What is that supposed to even __**mean**__!?"_ Ikuko paused briefly, but the silence was heavy. _"Kenji, I think… I think Darien __**knows**__. You know, about Serena's secret. And… And I think he might be blackmailing her or using it against her or--or _something_. For them to get __**this **__close, this sudden…"_

The smile froze on the blonde's but she wasn't sure which comment stung worse --Rose's innocent one, or her mother's almost vicious one. She swallowed thickly as her eyes were abruptly flooded with tears. "I--I…"

"Rose," Darien began softly even as he did a mixture of a grimace and a self-scorning sneer. Oh, yeah; his actions had most certainly backfired --yet he was _still _doing it. He chanced a glance up at Shingo to see the boy half asleep, mercifully not paying attention to anything in the least. "I don't think--"

"Yes." Serena interrupted, "He showed me your Mama's picture."

"_Ikuko… Ikuko, you can't possibly be serious. Darien would never…"_

"_I know what I'm seeing. And, be reasonable here, what do we really know about Darien? And we _still _let him stay in our daughter's _bedroom _last night after so little?"_

The toddler gasped in delight even as Darien's grimace became deeper. "Know Mama?"

"Y-yeah." Serena answered shakily, desperately trying to block out her mother's horrible comments about her friend. "I think I might have known your Mama." She swallowed thickly. "She was my fr--friend."

If possible, Rose's eyes grew wider with each word. "Mama fwend?" She gasped again as her eyes sparkled. "Mama bwerthday 'oon! 'elp Rose with pwesent for Mama?" Her smile faded as Serena abruptly choked on a sob. "…Sir-we-na?…"

"I--I don't know… if I can help you get her a b-birthday present." The blonde managed to choke out.

"Serena…" Darien whispered as he reached up to touch the girl's shoulder. The exact moment he made contact, the kitchen door burst open.

"All right everyone, time for breakfast!" Ikuko exclaimed with an overly-bright smile before it faded as she caught sight of the scene taking place. Serena looked like she was fighting back tears, Rose looked as confused and frightened as a child could get, Darien was touching her daughter's shoulder a little too familiarly for her comfort, and Shingo was watching everything with wide, bewildering eyes. "What…" She whirled on Darien furiously. "What have you done?"

Everything went downhill from there.

* * *

"I'm all done." Jadeite declared as he rubbed his hands together and did a once-over of the table in Zoisite's room. After he and his friend had tired themselves out from their fistfight, he had holed away in his room --with only the chemicals he needed, thanks to Zoisite's "brilliant" foresight-- to test the sample of Serena's blood. And, as soon as he'd finished, he'd quickly wrote up his results and set up with table with exhibits 'A' through 'F'. "Now who's ready for my presentation?" He asked with a grin.

"Just hurry _up _already." Zoisite complained from where he was seated next to the wide-awake Cadeyrn on the couch. "Or I'll show you what _I _can do with that chemical set and _your _sleeping form tonight."

"That's not being very professional." The Far-Eastern general commented as he adjusted the latex gloves he was wearing. "This is a delicate matter and should be treated as such. So, shut the hell up before I make you!" He grinned wolfishly. "I'm sure if you have another bruise to match the one below you're eye, you'll be in too much pain to even open your mouth."

"And how about I give _you _a bruise to go with the one you're sporting on your jawbone?" Zoisite countered with a grin.

Motoki whistled low as he glanced between the two men as a stare off ensued. "Do I sense another catfight approaching?" He eyed them both before coming to a conclusion. "You woke me up during your seventh round last time, I doubt it'll last as long this time. _So_… I bet ten dollars on Jadeite in the third round. Now, go!" He declared as made a chopping-motion with his hand.

Jadeite and Motoki both cracked up with laughter even as Zoisite rolled his eyes. "Are we getting on with this 'delicate matter' or not?"

"Oh. Right." Jadeite coughed pointedly. "Well, after careful observation last night--"

"--that involved destroying hotel property and skyrocketing our bill." The Frenchman interrupted deviously, unable to help himself. "Not to mention breaking a few code enforcements, I'm sure."

"They didn't kick us out and I promised them _and _you I'd pay for all the damages." Jadeite whined, "Can't you let it go already?"

"Only after you _generously _allow me to take over your suite since mine still smells like chemicals."

"All right, all right." The redhead grumbled, "Chew the issue to death, why don't you?"

"Why, thank you. I believe I will." Zoisite declared smugly as he leaned back in the couch. "Please, continue."

Jadeite rolled his eyes. He should have known he was walking into that trap. "Continuing on with more _important _things," He sent Zoisite a look before picking up the two sheets of paper with each of the girl's test results off to his side. "last night I tested Ami's blood sample first. In no time, I easily found the sequence the poison exhibits." Zoisite's tensing didn't go unnoticed by anyone, but they choose not to comment on it. "It stuck out like a sore thumb; and it continued to as I tested Serena's blood sample this morning." The redhead paused to pick up the paper under 'Exhibit A'. "This is what the poison looks like under the microscope." The other men rose an eyebrow. It looked like a three year old had drawn squiggly lines everywhere.

"As you can see," Jadeite continued, "the sequence is highly complex. Like nothing I've come across before, to be honest." He added as he returned the paper and moved down to the next exhibit. He picked the paper up there only to show them a picture of a mushroom. "The closest thing I can seem to relate it to is a mushroom poison by the name of Gyromitrin. It is commonly found in the genus _Verpa_, which you can see an example of here in Exhibit B."

Zoisite's eyes drank in the image of the brown and white toadstool. "And why is that poison relatable?"

"The structure under the microscope but, mostly, the symptoms. Gyromitrin affects numerous body systems. It leads to stupor, delirium, tremors, muscle cramps, vomiting and nausea, loss of coordination, and seizures. It, also, can cause red blood cells to break down that lead to other health problems." The redhead went down to 'Exhibit F' and picked up one of the files in the stack there. "Besides the verbal list you gave us that day, Cadeyrn, Serena's files lists _her _symptoms." He cracked up the file and began to read from it. "Escalated internal temperature. Unconsciousness. Shortness of breath. Convulsions. Heavy breathing. Then there's a few notes about a decreased number of red blood cells." He looked up. "I had had a suspicion that the poison had roots in Gyromitrin once you'd listed those particular symptoms that day. Yet, as both of you no doubt noticed, there are a few symptoms missing from the poison's effects that Serena suffered. That's because, when I was studying the sequence, I found it has a mixture of qualities that echo other poisons as well. One of them is a highly poisonous mushroom by the name of Tsukiyotake."

"Moonlight mushroom… It's Japanese?" Motoki questioned in shock.

"Very common." Jadeite answered easily, "That's why I chose it as an example. In reality, it is the poison 'muscarine' that we're looking for, which is in the genus _Omphalotus_. That particular poison causes sweating, tearing of the eyes, palpitations, and respiratory problems that may lead to failure. Which is pretty much the rest of the symptoms Serena suffered from." He went back over to Exhibit C and picked up the stack of papers there. "Besides all that, there are also strains of contact toxins--" He flashed up a picture of two clipart people hugging. "--and salamander poisons, for example."

Zoisite gave the man a deadpanned look as he flipped to the next picture. "That's a photograph of you."

"So?' Jadeite grinned. "I'm a salamander. You said it yourself." The grin widened as Motoki laughed before the general sobered up. "Unfortunately, I easily saw why the doctors were so interested in Serena's blood when she was at the hospital." He grimaced. "The rest of the sequence is completely alien. More than likely, based on its unfamiliarity to even _me_, a high percentage of the concoction comes from other planet's poisons. Like, seventy percent of it at least."

"What about my sister?" Motoki questioned as he folded his arms over his chest. "You said the poison stuck out like a sore thumb when you tested Ami and Serena's samples, but you didn't mention anything about Áine or the sample Nephrite got for you."

"I don't think she is being poisoned." Jadeite answered as he walked over to 'Exhibit D' and picked up one of the four slides there. He showed it to Cadeyrn. "This is some of her sample. No matter what I did or how hard I tried, I couldn't even find a _hint _of the sequence."

"Why?" Zoisite countered immediately, "Why --_how_-- isn't she being poisoned when the others are? Shouldn't she be too, as a failsafe?"

"Hmm." The Far-Eastern general wandered over to his Exhibit E and the other two men finally took in the fact it was Serenity's transformation broach. Jadeite adjusted his gloves again before picking up the half without the crystal in one hand. "Last night, after I tested both Áine and Ami's samples, I decided to test a piece of Serenity's broach --no, not the Silver Imperial Crystal. I am not _that _stupid." He commented as Zoisite opened his mouth. "Testing the crystal might possibly unleash its power or, worse yet, have an adverse effect on it that _neutralizes _its powers. I was not going to be blamed for destroying one of the most powerful items in the universe. Nope. Nu-uh."

Motoki's lips twitched for the briefest of seconds. "That doesn't tell us why Áine isn't getting poisoned."

"I'm getting there." Jadeite waved an impatient hand. "When I tested Serena's blood, it only confirmed what I figured out last night. The Senshi are being poisoned through their transformation devices. It was, like we hypothesized that day in the park Zoi, a factor that was exploited. Severely and easily. As such, I think it's safe to assume that Áine probably doesn't use a transformation device. She remembers everything and knows the Senshi can transform on will alone so, of course, she probably wouldn't take a device. Thus, no poison." He declared, nodding his head.

"Wait a minute." Zoisite suddenly exclaimed, "You said contact toxin and you're wearing _gloves_. We all touched that broach --does that mean we're infected too?"

"Nope." Jadeite quickly put down the broach before going back over to the 'Exhibit D' slides. "I had that thought as well, so I did a quick test on myself." He grinned toothily as he held up a sheet of paper he'd written up his own test results on. "A clean bill of health. Both last night, and this morning to be extra sure. The contact toxin is a very trace amount, probably only to get things moving from the device to the body."

"And how does that happen, exactly?" Motoi asked, blinking in confusion a few times. This was a little over his head here…

Jadeite turned to him, his brow furrowed. "My best guess is that a heavy dosage of the poison is transferred into the bloodstream during the first Senshi activation with those transformation devices. Probably via one of those alien poisons." His lips twisted. "In my mind, I imagine the transformation is almost like a traumatic event for the body. The powers may be familiar but, when transforming, it's almost like an full-out attack of them. As power invades even the smallest pore and cell and the body is struggling to accept the change, the poison would easily slip past the immune system to settle in comfortably while waiting to be activated. With each transformation, that much more poison is slipped in. …Luna said she almost died when she used Serena's broach, correct?"

Zoisite nodded quickly. "Yes, according to Serenity."

"Again, my best guess is that if that 'elimination signal' exists, it involves another hefty dosage of the poison entering the body during that final transformation. But, something about that final dosage --it probably contains an activation trigger-- makes the poison deadly. Luna said she almost died but she wouldn't have. It's that simple. She was saved by the fact she didn't preexisting poison inside her body."

"And if she had?" Motoki asked warily.

"A painful death." The redhead answered bluntly, "It'll probably seem to drag on for hours but in actuality only lasts five minutes or so. That's where the salamander poison traces come in. It's a fast acting one and, based on its genus, gives you hallucinations, possibly swelling of the larynx that induces suffocation, and all kinds of other stuff. Luna _felt _like she going to die because that's how lethal that final dosage combination is. It takes the slow moving poison already inside you, magnifies it by a million, adds in a splash of even more suffering, and then you die. Just like that."

Motoki suddenly felt faint. "And Lady Luna… she only got the _splash _of suffering? And wanted to kill Serenity because it was _that bad_?"

Jadeite opened his mouth before stopping, his brow furrowing. "She only got the splash, yes. But I don't necessary think she wanted to kill Serenity because it was that bad. She wanted to kill Serenity because she, apparently, blamed _Serena's _broach for 'almost killing her'." He answered, adding air quotes. "So, it _was _that bad, but that wasn't the reason Luna went psycho. She just blamed Serenity, which isn't true. She's a victim too." He paused, his eyes sliding to his fellow general. "Zoi, you're quiet. What are you thinking?"

The European general looked down at his hands. "How bad is the exposure? To the both of them."

Jadeite was silent for a minute before breathing through his nose heavily. "In Serenity? No less than disastrous." He went back and picked up the broach again. "This is highly poisonous; Serenity became a Senshi in February, correct?" He received two nods in reply. "If this was an actual person infected with the same amount of poison, it would have been dead in March." He paused. "At the _very _latest."

"…And Albreda?" The light-brunette asked.

"I did a comparison chart." Jadeite said after another minute pause, "You know, on the levels of poison inside the broach, Serenity, and Ami. The broach is highly poisonous and deadly, while both Serenity and Ami …are… _active_." He finally decided on.

Zoisite looked up sharply. "Don't do this to me. I can handle it."

"Ami's poison level is as disastrous as Serena's. The next transformation will kill them." The redhead answered bluntly as he crossed his arms over his chest. "The poison is _active_. I looked at the levels in their blood; one more transformation --and it doesn't even have to be the final 'elimination one' or _not_-- will be the end of them. It'll push the dosage over the limit to where the body will finally take notice of it and it'll try to attack it but it'll already be too late. The poison will reek havoc on their bodies. If it _does _happen to be the elimination transformation, however, they'll only be in even more agony. If they're _lucky_, they'll pass out from the pain before dying." He paused. "She wanted them to suffer, that's the hard fact. She doesn't want them around --at _all_-- and this is her way of doing it. If they step out of line before the poison kills them naturally, she can just push it along. If not? They'll still die down the road anyways."

Motoki swayed a little as his face blanched. "Dear Sol…"

"Sol can't save them." Zoisite whispered as he clutched his head in his hands. "It looks like nothing will."

"Only it gets worse." Jadeite said as he went down to the edge of the table and picked up two files. "I grabbed _all _the medical files you guys grabbed when I went to my room earlier. While I was waiting for the chemicals to work, I skimmed through Endymion and Rei's. Which, I'm assuming by the fact you didn't say anything to me this morning, neither of you could bring yourself do to." He paused, looking down grimly. "And really you should have because we have another problem. _Two __**big **_problems, actually."

Zoisite looked up sharply. "What's bigger than Albreda and Serenity's possible _deaths_?"

Jadeite looked down at the files in his hands. "Based on these files, Rei is a carbon copy of Bellona. Right down to the blood type, even." He looked up at his friend with haunted eyes. "But the worst? A doctor saw Darien's body glowing gold when he was a child. The same doctor that _insisted _he be the one study Serena and her blood's _abnormalities_."

* * *

Done: September 14, 2009 8pm

Posted: July 12, 2009 8:30pm

:D Oh, yeah. And this is just part _one _--the morning! Wait until I post part two and all it's wonderful-ness.

But! I'm going to give you a little bit to absorb all the fluffiness (/sarcasm) of this chapter first. Trust me, it's a system overload if you try to read them seamlessly. The next one is a doozy too. (And wait until you get a load of Rei's scene! I think I'm proud. :) ) Besides, I need to organize it up better, maybe rewrite some stuff. But I'm crossing my fingers for soon!

Please R/R, always appreciated. Oh, and, please continue to ask any and all questions you have --I'm compiling a list to make sure I take care of everything!

_Tiger Celeste._


	33. Chapter 33

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon and I am not making any money off this story. It's just something to entertain myself with.

I have NO intentions to abandon this story; I swear with the whole 'stick a needle in my eye' and everything. Without getting into personal matters, life has just plain sucked and I've been struggling a lot. Sick, too; I keep getting sick. . . .

Besides, this chapter kept ballooning past everything I was trying to make it and, as I dissect the manga (LOVE, _LOVE _IT! How did I go so long without knowing the true story?), I realized that my plan to make _this _story an AU retelling-ish thing has, well, not been much of a "retelling." I have half a mind to start all over but I won't. I love this story too darn much! Just, you know, be forewarned that the next story might be a little packed with . . . evilness . . . —insert ironic evil laughter—

That being said, I _am _still planning on the continuation to this. I have just over a hundred pages of ideas/scenes for it, plus the hundred-twenty or so for this. Oh yeah. :D Oh! I've also been trying to improve my grammar and punctuation. Comments, suggestions? Does it read better?

Well, here's to hoping that I managed to keep the atmosphere of the last chapter and that there aren't too many errors. :) Please R/R, and enjoy!

On to the story~!

* * *

Last time:

"_And you know what she told me? 'Darien always knows what to say'. What is that supposed to even mean!" _Ikuko paused briefly, but the silence was heavy. _"Kenji, I think . . . I think Darien _knows_. You know, about Serena's secret. And . . . and I think he might be blackmailing her or using it against her or . . . or _something_. For them to get _this _close, this sudden . . ."_

The toddler gasped in delight even as Darien's grimace deepened. "Know Mama?"

"Y-yeah," Serena answered shakily, desperately trying to block out her mother's horrible comments. "I think I might have known your Mama." She swallowed thickly. "She was my fr-friend."

If possible, Rose's eyes grew wider with each word. "Mama fwend?" She gasped again, her eyes sparkling. "Mama bwerthday 'oon! 'elp Rose with pwesent for Mama?" Her smile faded as Serena abruptly choked on a sob. "Sir-we-na . . .?"

"All right everyone, time for breakfast!" Ikuko exclaimed with an overly-bright smile before it faded as she caught sight of the scene taking place. Serena looked like she was fighting back tears, Rose looked as confused and frightened as a child could get, Darien was touching her daughter's shoulder a little too familiarly for her comfort, and Shingo was watching everything with wide, bewildering eyes. "What . . ." She whirled on Darien furiously. "What have you done?"

* * *

The response around the room was instantaneous.

Darien's shoulders stiffened in defense even as his hand dropped from Serena's shoulder numbly. Kenji and Shingo, on the other hand, simply allowed their mouths to drop open in shock at the usually sweet housewife's behavior. Rose, in confusion, bit her lip as all the emotion emitting from the pretty lady's mommy invaded her psyche.

Serena's reaction, of course, was the most vocal. "M-Mom! He didn't _do _anything! _Nothing_!"

Ikuko pursed her lips as she practically slammed the stack of pancakes she was holding down onto the table. "You're _crying_, Serena. Obviously someone did something! And he"—she cast a swift glare at Darien, who met her square in the eye—"looks guilty!"

It was a struggle for Kenji to shake off his shock, barely managing to say, "Now, dear—"

Serena, in the meantime, had jumped to her feet with a scowl. "Darien doesn't like crying! He can look _uneasy_, if he wants to!"

"Serena—" Darien tried, only for him to be interrupted like Kenji had.

"None of that tells me _why _you're crying!" Ikuko insisted as she placed her hands on her hips.

"Because of _you_! I heard you, Mom! Of course I'm going to cry when I hear you telling Dad you think Darien is some horrible, manipulative, blackmailing kind of person!"

Shingo and Kenji winced as Ikuko took a step back, paling. "Serena . . . oh, honey, I didn't mean . . . it—it's just a little . . . _strange_, is all; the relationship you two have. . . ."

"Strange? _Strange?_" Serena cried disbelievingly. "You're trying to tell me you said all that stuff about him because it's _strange _that we're _friends?_"

Darien grimaced and stood, a stricken Rose clinging to his neck. "I think we should leave. . . ."

Serena whirled on him, making her tears splash down her cheeks at the sudden move. "No. Sit down." He continued to look hesitate, making her narrow her eyes. "Sit down, _now_," she snapped.

He immediately did.

"Okay," he whispered as he hiked the toddler higher up in his arms. Rose watched everything wide-eyed, unsure of what to do but bravely trying not to cry.

Serena felt her face soften as she looked at the girl. "Shingo, go take Rose outside again," she ordered as her eyes flashed over to him.

Shingo gawked, swearing to himself as he saw silver pupils staring at him. He blinked, rubbing his own eyes briefly, but when he opened them again all he saw was his regular blue-eyed sister's pleading expression.

"Please," she whispered. "Neither you or Rose should hear this."

"O-oh. Okay." Half in a daze, he stumbled over to Rose and took her from Darien's grip, feeling as wary as the man looked. "Come on, Rose," he said softly. "We can go look at the birdies again, okay?"

She paid him almost no mind. Instead, her worried eyes flitted over everyone before they stopped on Serena. "Rose . . . Rose ah'wy."

Serena froze at the reminder of what the girl had said what seemed like ages ago. '_A birthday present for Makoto. . . ._' She swallowed thickly. "You don't have anything to be sorry for, sweetie," she insisted gently. "We just . . . my Mama and I got mad at each other but we're going to be okay as soon as we talk. All right?" She forced herself to smile as brightly as she could.

Rose continued to look unsure, her eyes darting back and forth between the Tsukino women, before nodding hesitantly as Ikuko mustered up a smile—or, at least, what looked like one—too. "O'ay." She looked up at Shingo curiously. "'irdies eat 'an'ake?"

He smiled. "I don't see why not." He looked around the room briefly before shaking his head. "We'll be taking some of these then . . ." He grabbed his plate, tossing a few of the cooling pancakes on it, and hiked the toddler higher up in his grip. "We got to eat our breakfast too, right, Rose?"

She grinned and, in all her toddler-innocence, within a blink of an eye she didn't seem to be bothered by the tense atmosphere around her anymore. "'an'ake! Rose _wuv_ 'an'ake!"

He chuckled as he walked out of the room. "I had a feeling you did. So, how about we—"

The second the duo's conversation was cut off by the front door closing behind them, Ikuko began. "You're my _daughter_, Serena, I'm just looking out for you. I didn't say it was strange Darien and you are friends. I said it was strange the kind of relationship you two had."

The smile Rose and Shingo had brought to Serena's face quickly faded. "You want to hear about _strange_, Mom?"

She turned around, her expression so intense that Ikuko had to stop herself from flinching. Those weren't Serena's eyes—they were _Sailor Moon's_. The battle-hardened warrior; not her sweet, innocent daughter . . .

"I was a fourteen-year-old," Serena continued, "who was told by a cat—yeah, a cat; Luna can really _talk_, she can read, too—that I was supposed to be Sailor Moon and battle these . . . these _monsters _that looked like they came from my darkest nightmares. _That _is strange. Whatever you seem to think the relationship Darien and I have is _nothing _like that."

Ikuko's eyes stayed trained on Darien the entire time Serena spoke, only to pale as he simply continued to sit there in silence. No shock. No surprise. Just silence. "You . . . you really do know," she said nervously. "That's why you weren't surprised about Makoto . . . Jupiter . . . upstairs."

He looked over at her, only offering a solemn "Yes," before looking back up at where Serena was still standing behind him and her chair.

Ikuko's mouth opened and closed, flabbergasted, as she also shifted her attention back to her daughter.

The blonde didn't even flinch. "Yeah. Darien knows. But he isn't blackmailing me or manipulating me or . . . or _whatever_ like you seem to think he is. _I _was the one that all but shouted it out to him while we were watching Jupiter die on the news; it was _voluntary _information, okay?"

"You . . . you were in shock, grieving. That's _duress_," Ikuko argued.

"No it wasn't. Yeah, I admit I hinted at everything on accident but I would have found a way out of it if I hadn't of _wanted _him to know in the end. And go ahead and tell me how much of a mistake or . . . or how _strange _that was of me. I don't care because I know it's _not_. A lot of things are strange in my life, things you probably would never imagine, but there's one thing I know that will never be and that's _Darien_. We weren't '_this _close, this sudden', like you said. This has been _months _in the making. I've spent time with him almost every day since February, Mom. That's almost _nine _months."

"You complained about him all the _time_, though."

"_So?_ I complain about Shingo just as much! You count the number of times I've called my own brother a creep and I _know _it'll be as much as I've called Darien a jerk. And, just to let you know," Serena added suddenly. "I _literally_ run into Darien on my way to school. I'm going to notice that when I accidentally have coffee splashed on me sometimes, its _always _straight black. Then when I go to the arcade in the afternoon, he orders the same drink at _least _twice. Sometimes more when he's studying for a test. And it's always either straight black or with two creams. You know me; when it isn't, I'm going to go over to him and ask why and tell him he needs to realize how nasty that stuff is, anyways. I caught on quick that when his coffee happens to have sugar, he's in a bad mood. It isn't strange that I know all that; it's just stuff you _notice _when you spend time with someone. He could probably tell you exactly what I order and when, too."

Ikuko frowned at the conviction in her daughter's voice, making an effort not to acknowledge Darien's thoughtful look. It was as if wondering if he _could _do as Serena said. "Just because you know someone's coffee order doesn't mean you actually _know _someone."

Serena scowled. "You want a fact sheet? He was born in Britain and turned eighteen on August third. His shoe size is a Japanese twenty-six and he's six-foot-two. His favorite color is black and he likes red too because _both _his motorcycle and car are those colors. He loves nature more than anything, probably, and he doesn't have a favorite season because he loves them all for different reasons. His favorite food is chocolate but he'll deny it if you ask because he thinks a doctor—or any other sane, healthy person for that matter—shouldn't love it as much as he does. His favorite thing to wear was this ugly green blazer but it got ruined and stained with blood after he wrapped it around me that night I went to the hospital. He's a first year at K.O. University in their medicine program and before that he attended Moto Azuba Junior High and High School. His favorite subject has always been physics and he loves going to school because he can challenge himself and learn something new all at once. He's private and a perfectionist; he's quiet and mysterious and sometimes he can seem indifferent but he's really sweet and thoughtful. He's richer than any of us can imagine but _I _only found out about that a few days ago because he isn't snobby or anything else like you'd expect. He hates people worrying about him, yet he's probably the biggest worrier you'll ever come across when it comes to someone he really cares about. And that's why he's so determined to get Hotaru's guardianship, so she won't have to go through what he did." She stopped, taking a deep breath.

"Don't you _dare _say I don't know Darien," she continued in a heated whisper. "I may not know every single thing there is to know about him but I do know him better than most people and he knows me just as well. That's just what we _do. _We notice things about each other and then we _tease _each other. He calls me Odango Atama, I call him a jerk. He says something to me, I get mad and throw a shoe or anything else at him when I can't come up with a good enough retort. Sometimes I come home still angry but now more than ever do I regret all those things I ranted about him. You're only using my own frustrated words against me. Against _him_." She squeezed her eyes shut. "And it's not _right_. I know Darien and he would never be the person you seem to think he is. He's only trying to help me."

Ikuko's eyes narrowed against her own volition. "I'm sorry for what I said in the kitchen; I honestly am." Her eyes flicked to Darien briefly but his attention stayed focused on Serena. "But you don't need to rely on him like this," she added desperately. "We can help you just as well as he can. With anything."

"And just _what _do you think he's helping me with?" Ikuko opened her mouth only to instantly pause, making Serena frown tightly. "No, better question," she whispered. "What do you think he's forcing me to do?" She paused, searching her mother's pale face. "I'm a virgin and I plan to be for a long while; is that what you want to hear? Or how about that was only my second kiss that you saw on the doorstep that night? The first one only happened hours before and we sat in an awkward silence the entire drive back here. The third one and half the forth happened upstairs, yeah, but considering this topic and the fact we're having it in _front _of Darien _and _you and Dad, I'm positive I won't get another for months. If that."

Ikuko flinched at the girl's harsh words even as her heart soared at them. "I . . . I never thought—"

"Mom," Serena cut in. "I'm being honest here. Brutally honest, in fact. I think I deserve the same respect. I know exactly what you were thinking." She took a deep breath, shaking her head. "And guess what? It didn't happen, wasn't going to happen, and it won't any time soon. He's _helping _me; that's it!"

"With _what?_" Ikuko cried. "I'm trying to understand here but I _can't_. You have other people to help you. You have us—your _family_—and you have your friends. They're _Senshi_; they understand what you're going through when we aren't able to. There's nothing that Darien can do that the rest of us can't!"

"Yes there is. Plenty of stuff."

Something told her not to say it, that it would only cause more harm than good, but Ikuko was too furious and concerned to listen to the little voice inside of her. "Then tell me. Now. I demand to know just what he can do. What? Is it the fact that he can make you cry yourself to sleep every night? Because I know it's not from anyone else; it only began happening after you began spending more time with _him_. Or is it because he can force you to stop hanging out with your _real _friends in _favor _of him?" Even before she registered Kenji's startled hiss of her name and Darien's dark glare, she knew she'd gone too far. But it was already too late to take it back and, honestly, she wasn't so sure she wanted to.

"Have you ever heard of _coincidence_, Mom?" Serena snapped, making Ikuko wince. "Because there's a lot that's happened this past month—the _same _month I've been spending more time with Darien in—that makes me cry at night. He hasn't forced me to do a thing. I've only been forced to do one thing and that was giving up being Sailor Moon by the _other _Senshi. They _forced _me, Mom. As in they physically took away the broach I used to transform, powers, and everything else I had. I haven't given up on spending time with my friends, all but Ami and Makoto gave up on _me_. And then Makoto _died_." Serena took a shaky breath even as her hands clenched at her sides. "I have _a lot_ to cry over. More than you can ever know. Rei and Minako don't want me around; Luna _left _me, remember? Ami might want to hang out with me but I'll only get her into _trouble _if we try to outside of school. All their lives revolve around being Senshi and I'm _not _one anymore. My life's stopped being consumed with having to lie about where I've been or where I'm going. I'm not being called to a battle in the middle of the night that I might _never _come back from. A battle I spent almost the entire time worrying if you're going to check up on me only to find me missing and think who _knows_ what. I'm not the one who has to skip yet another class that I'm in danger of failing, or the one to automatically fall asleep in ones I _can _attend because I'm so tired from the day or night before—" She stopped abruptly, trying to swallow the thick lump forming in her throat.

Darien clenched his hands against the tops of his knees to keep from reaching out to her; he knew it'd only make the situation that much worse. Even still, he was desperately trying to get his mouth to work and say what was on his mind. Yet it refused to cooperate, leaving the thoughts to repeat over and over to his mind uselessly. '_Just let me leave, Serena. You don't have to defend me like this. I don't want to be the one to ruin you and your mother's relationship._'

After what seemed like hours, Serena took a deep breath and closed her eyes. "I started spending time with Darien because I finally _could_. Because I wasn't almost instantly pulled this way or that every time I tried to talk to him. He's become as much of a friend as Ami is and Makoto was." She paused, shaking her head. "No. He's not just one of my best friends—he's my _very _best. And _that's _why he always knows what to say. He knows what to say to cheer me up, or to make me stop dwelling on every bad thing that's been happening to me lately." Her eyes snapped open to fix on her mother. "You saw him upstairs. He got me to stop crying over Makoto in minutes. You can't do that. You don't understand what's happened like he does. You just . . . you don't _understand_."

"Then _tell _me," Ikuko pleaded. "Tell me what's been happening so I _can _understand. It's not fair that only he should be privy to any of this . . . this _thing _going on!"

"_Fair?_" Serena stared at her mother in disbelief, torn between laughing and crying again. "Has it even occurred to you that I'm not telling you for a _reason_? This has nothing to do with _fairness._ If I could, I wouldn't even have involved _him _but he was already a part of everything before I ever knew it!"

"Serena," Darien began slowly. He swallowed a few times, forcing the next words out of his dry mouth. "Maybe we should tell them—"

"_No_." She whirled on him with a glower. "Don't you _dare_. There isn't any need for them to know that." Her eyes softened as she saw the concern in his. "And you know as well as I do that they'd only treat you the same way the Senshi do."

"It doesn't matter," he insisted. It was getting easier to speak with each word, but not by much. "Your mother already hates me just as much as they do now. What would telling her do, really?"

She snorted and crossed her arms across her chest. "Oh, I don't know. How about we pick one of the numerous things I can think of off the top of my head?"

Kenji opened his mouth, intent on asking the question burning on his tongue, before closing it before the first syllable was formed. No. He knew his suspicion was right; it _had _to be with the way the two of them were acting. '_He's Tuxedo Mask, just like I've thought. . . ._'

Ikuko watched the two teenagers as they engaged in a silent war of wills, at a total loss, before her eyes narrowed. "If the Senshi hate someone, then I would think they have a mighty good reason too."

Serena's head snapped over to her mother. "Then am _I _a good reason?" Ikuko only looked at her baffled. "They hate Darien because he protected me," she elaborated. "Tried as much as he possibly could, as a matter of fact. They hated the fact he was trying to be helpful. Chivalrous, even."

"I knew it," Kenji's whisper went unheard by anyone, as did his rapidly widening—and _thankful_—eyes.

"That can't be the _only _reason they hate him." Disbelief filled Ikuko's words. "There has to be another reason why."

"You don't even _care _that they hate him at all, do you?" Serena scowled as her mother's silence. "How about _you _tell me why you hate him, then? You didn't a few days ago, I know that for sure. You gave him _clothes _for me and let him take me _hours _away from here, as a matter of fact! And I know it couldn't have been that he spent the night in my room because you didn't throw him out the first time you came up. So, this morning then? When you found out we'd kissed in my room? Or how about the fact that I defended him against all these crazy accusations of yours?" She shook her head before anyone had a chance to say anything. "No. It doesn't matter. You're just like them. There isn't any real reason to hate him but you still do. Like . . . like you're _expected _to or something, for goodness sakes!" She gasped, her eyes widening. "Like your _expected _to. . . . No," she whispered as she began to lose herself in possibilities. "That would be impossible. She couldn't do that. Could . . . she? She made them do _other _stuff, I guess . . ."

"Serena?" Her head snapped over to Darien as he began to stand in worry. "What is it?"

"I . . . I don't know," she whispered before shaking her head quickly and grabbing a hold of his arm. "Come on. I need to ask you something."

"It can wait," Ikuko insisted.

Serena's eyes narrowed but she didn't stop her tugging on Darien's arm in a vain attempt to get him to move. He'd stood up all the way, now all he had to do was follow her out of the room—hopefully out of the _house_—so she could find out if what she was thinking was a real possibility or not. If Luna really could have . . . "No. It _can't_."

"Then say it right here, right now."

Serena heaved a cross between a frustrated growl and a sigh as she turned to her mother. "This is between Darien and me _only_. I already told you I have a reason I don't want you to know any of this stuff, why can't you accept that?"

"We do, sweetie." Kenji's encouraging smile lasted for only a few seconds, falling off his face by his wife's next words.

"I don't—no, I _can't_—accept that. Anything you say in front of him, you should be able to say in front of _us_. If it's Senshi-related business, fine; I can respect _that_. Go off and find Rei and ask her."

"Over my dead body," Darien hissed, a dark look flittering through his eyes as they flashed gold for the briefest of seconds. It was all Endymion had not to snap out his own words also. Instead both he and his reincarnation winced as Serena laughed; it was a bitter sound, very bitter.

"Rei? _Rei? _You don't want me to spend time with Darien but you want to go to Rei and rely on _her _for help? Ha! That'll be the day. She hates me, Mom. Just like Luna. And just like Minako probably will too, if she doesn't already. Darien is the _only _one I can rely on anymore for the kind of help I need."

Ikuko frowned. "Just because you and the Senshi got into a little disagreement and it was decided you should take a break from being a Senshi, doesn't mean—"

"Decided to take a _break_? I already told you, I was _forced _to stop being Sailor Moon." The snap of Serena's voice matched the snap of her emotions as they finally got the best of her. Everything she'd gone through the past month—no, the past _year_; all her fears and insecurities on who she'd been back in the Silver Millennium. . . . "There wasn't any kind of unanimous decision that involved _me_, and in no way was it _little_. Do you call me ending up in the hospital _little?_ How about that poison or whatever I have inside my blood, is that a _little _thing? Or the fact I was kidnapped and handcuffed to Minako's bed for a _week_? But what would you know about any of that?" she asked bitterly. "You thought I was in _Kyoto _the entire time! So nice of you to allow me to visit the aunt you hate and swore never to talk to, hmm? And I was just _so _sick, that I had to stay with them without you even _talking _to me. Isn't that right? Did you really think any of that was _real_? Luna can influence your mind, did you know that? How do you think Shingo got over his fear of cats enough to let her stay in the house? She made _all _of you accept her! And she's probably making you hate Darien too because it would make so much _sense_ . . ."

Both Kenji and Ikuko paled, unable to believe the words sprouting out of their daughter's mouth. The—the Senshi couldn't _possibly _have . . . Serena had been caught the illness their family had had; they knew it and Shingo was growing _out _of his fear of cats . . .

"Serena, that's enough," Darien ordered as he turned around to face her completely.

"No it isn't!" she snapped as he took a hold of her shoulders and tried to block her parents from her. She looked up at him, silver fire in her eyes. "I refuse to allow my mother to even _try _to ruin our relationship once again! I _refuse_!" Serenity hissed furiously. She began shoving at his chest, her eyes constantly flickering back and forth between her natural blue and the unearthly silver. "Unhand me at once! She's so desperate to know what you can do, then she deserves to know!" She peered around him as he tried to wrestle her further into his embrace, her eyes blazing a metallic blue. "Huh, Mother? You want to know what Darien can do that the rest of you can't? He's the only one who can keep me _alive_. You can't do that! The Senshi can't either because, with the exception of Mercury, _they're _the ones that _want _me dead!"

"No . . ."

"It can't be . . ."

Her eyes blazed at her parents' horrified whispers, even as they barely registered in her mind. "Is that what you wanted to know? Huh? I _tried _to keep it away from you! I _told _you I had a reason I didn't want to tell you anything! You were the one that kept pushing me into telling you, so this is _your _fault!"

"You will stop this foolishness!"

Serena's brain rattled as Darien shook her shoulders. As the silver completely dispersed out of her eyes and the enraged haze abandoned her mind, she felt horror began to sit in. She paled as her eyes darted from one horrified parent to the other, and back again. "No," she whispered. "Please tell me I didn't . . ." Her eyes flashed up to Darien desperately, frantically hoping she hadn't been that careless, that _stupid _but . . . it wasn't Darien that she saw.

It was the golden-eyed man.

And he was _furious_.

* * *

"For Terra's sake!" Zoisite snapped as he slapped Jadeite over the head. "Scare me to death, will you? You said the doctor saw Darien's _whole _body glowing gold!" He menacingly shook the manila folder he was holding. "This only has a half-crossed out notation of golden _sparks _on his _arms_!"

"Serena can die. Serena can die," Motoki repeated anxiously as he ran a hand through his hair, his pace never wavering front of the couch in Zoisite's hotel suite. "It's normal to be this freaked out, right? It seems pretty normal but—" He swallowed his words. "Is _has _to be normal. I mean, she was my cousin. . . ."

Neither general paid the former-prince any mind as they knelt beside the coffee table, all the files now open and their contents spread about before them. "I was going for the dramatic, Zoi," Jadeite grumbled as he rubbed his abused head. "And that's still not a good thing!" He shoved the folder out of his face. "Golden sparks? _Hel-lo_, Darien's _healing power_! No one should have seen that in this lifetime! _Ever!_"

Zoisite instantly deflated. "Yeah. You're right." He leaned against the bottom of the couch at his back, frowning in thought. "When we were younger, Endymion's power would automatically manifest to heal him. Anything from a dog bite, to if he accidentally cut himself with a sword, to any ailment like . . . like _chicken pox_. He was young, and thus still growing into his skin, and his powers didn't want anything to happen to him before he was matured and his own immune system able to handle itself. It stopped doing that so readily around the time he was eight or so. Apparently the same thing happened this time around. The powers automatically manifested to protect him."

Jadeite nodded. "Makes sense to me. Since he still _has _powers and everything." He looked back up at Zoisite in confusion. "But why—"

"_Right?_" Motoki practically snarled as his head darted from Jadeite to Zoisite desperately, his face an ashen grey. "I'm freaking out about Serena dying over here but the two of you are acting so much calmer than I am! You're talking about _Endymion _for crying out loud!"

"Speaking of dramatic," Jadeite muttered before raising an amused eyebrow as he watched the man's endless pacing. "Trust me, Cadeyrn, your freaking out is probably the only normal thing about you."

The Solarian instantly heaved a sigh as he threw himself down onto the couch. After mere seconds however, he suddenly growled and half-sat up, reaching behind him to pull something out. The response from the other men was immediate.

"W-whoa!" Jadeite jumped to his feet, wide-eyed, and waved his hands in a warding position frantically. "I was joking! A _joke_! That's it!"

Zoisite finally shook himself of his stupor and got up, backing toward his fellow general slowly. "Honestly, Cadeyrn, Jed's a moron but that's no reason to _shoot _him."

"What . . .?" Motoki blinked in surprise before looking down to the gun he was limply holding his hand. He instantly rolled his eyes. "Please." He shook the gun slightly, making both generals recoil. "The only one in danger of this thing is _me_, probably."

"Because you'll shoot yourself in the foot?" Jadeite asked with a strangled laugh, his shoulders slumping in relief as he sat back down on the ground.

Motoki rolled his eyes again. "Yeah, why don't we go with that?" he supplied dryly before grimacing as he looked down at the black weapon. "By Sol, do I hate this thing. It's always digging into my back no matter _what _I do and it makes me so . . . so . . . _twitchy_. Yeah, twitchy."

Zoisite carefully seated himself on the furthest side of the coffee table, his eyes trained on the gun warily. "And why do you have that, again?"

Motoki's lips curled up in disgusted sneer. "Commander. Direct order, he said. Need to carry a gun with me at all times. Right after I told him Áine was in Tokyo. So, basically, he wants me all but ready to shoot my sister at a moment's notice. But that doesn't bother me, does it?" He growled, throwing the gun down onto the couch and standing back up. "Just like I'm not bothered that my cousin is going to die!" he spat, his pacing beginning anew. "For Sol's _sake!_"

Jadeite squinted at the gun. "You have a license to carry that thing? In Japan, I mean?"

"Yes." Motoki whirled around. "Do _you _have a license to tell people their cousin is going to die?"

"_No_. . . ." Jadeite sighed and shook his head almost immediately. "Hold yourself together, will you? _We _have Serena's transformation broach. _Remember?_"

Motoki's wide eyes and deflating shoulders said he _hadn't_.

Jadeite snorted. "Yeah. Exactly. No matter how bad it sounds, Serenity's possible death is the last thing on the 'Oh, Shit!' list right now. The poison can't do anymore than it has without another transformation which _we _hold the key to. She's . . . relatively safe. In retrospect."

"He's right," Zoisite added as he grabbed Darien's medical file off the table. "We need to be calm and rational so we can figure out what to do before everything implodes on us. We're starting with Dr. Rupert. If he knows about Darien's powers, then he could have suspected Serena, which could lead to complete Senshi exposure if he connected her to Sailor Moon. That's the _biggest _threat. Ami's possible death is the most _immediate_ but, if the doctor knows _everything_, that affects more than just her life. It affects the Senshi, their families, Endymion, which in turn affects us and HQ and everyone who's gone to school there. Then it's Rei's possible clone status because if she _is _a clone that means she's working for"—his lips curved into a sneer—"at _least _Beryl. Then we worry about Serenity's possible death. Understood?"

"Yeah." Jadeite turned his attention to Cadeyrn pointedly. "Dr. Rupert. We need help finding out what he might know, so start talking. What do you know about him? Did you ever met him while you were visiting Serena? Or maybe any time before that?"

Motoki's eyes flickered between the generals before he reseated himself on the couch, reasonably calm again. They were starting to form a plan—he could follow a plan. "No, I never met him. But I seen him once. Older, grey-haired, white lab coat, a gaggle of nurses following him. Pretty normal sight. But,"—he frowned down at the medical file in Zoisite's hands—"there's something about him. He isn't like our good ol' Dr. Aidan. He felt almost . . . _cold_. Standoffish, definitely. When I saw him, I was with Serena's doctor—a man named Vigil—and he said he hated working with Rupert because he made you feel like an insignificant speck on his glasses."

Zoisite's eyes narrowed. "Anything else?"

Motoki shrugged. "With a surname like Rupert I'd guess he was American or English-descended. Other than that, no."

Jadeite frowned. "Vigil . . . Vigil . . . why does that name sound familiar?"

"He'd been Darien's doctor once upon a time, too," Motoki supplied.

Zoisite nodded as he flipped Darien's file open. "I seen that. He's a doctor specializing . . . in . . . trauma . . ." He stopped, his eyes focused on the paperwork unseeingly as he thought back to just a few days ago.

"_**He's been an orphan since his parents were killed in an automobile accident when he was a child. To make that even worse, he has amnesia from the time he woke up after the accident downwards. He told me that he'd been sent from hospital to hospital for months."**_

"That's right, the car accident." He looked at Cadeyrn. "You told us about it while you were informing us what happened when Serena was admitted to the hospital. Commander mentioned it before, too. Darien's parents ultimately died, he became amnesic, and then he proceeded to grow up in an orphanage."

"It'd been more than one," Motoki murmured, suddenly finding his shoes the most interesting things in the room. He'd promised Darien he'd never breath a word of his past to anyone, yet here he was discussing it with men that looked just like Dark Kingdom generals _again_. He couldn't imagine what Darien would do if he found out that that little fact. . . .

Jadeite stayed silent, mulling over what'd he'd glossed from Darien's medical file. _Total amnesia_. It was so hard to believe the hardships Endymion's reincarnation had to go through. It seemed he couldn't be completely happy in any lifetime. Last time, it had been his wife that had been threatened to be taken away, this time his parents actually _had_. If he didn't already know better, he would think that _both _events were caused by the same person. . . .

"Says here he was first admitted just over a decade ago," Zoisite remarked. "Some notations about a broken wrist. He'd been in a coma for two weeks after he'd been admitted. Both Drs. Vigil and Rupert had been assigned to him right from the start. He'd been sent to other hospitals in the area, however. Specialists." He squinted. "And there's something here about a head injury. Severe. Believes it attributed to his total . . . amnesia . . ." His brow furrowed. "_Total _amnesia. That's why Commander said 'he knows his name is Darien.' It was probably the _only _thing he knew." He looked up from the medical file hesitantly, half-afraid of what else he might find if he looked longer. "Could Rupert have taken advantage of that? Of Darien not remembering anything?"

"I don't see a real reason to," Jadeite offered before he reached over to yank the file out of his friend's hands. "There has to be something else . . .," he insisted as he quickly began thumbing through it. He stopped after a few moments, tilting his head. "Okay. We have a half-crossed out notation made by Dr. Rupert that mentions a few gold sparks on Darien's arms during a test and Serena's file has a notation of the same doctor being very enthusiastic about finding what was ailing her bloodstream and healing her . . ."

"Which isn't saying that he _insisted _he be the one to do so," Zoisite pointed out as he leaned against the couch again, closing his eyes in thought.

"I read between the lines dramatically," Jadeite muttered, throwing the man a glare, before he cleared his throat. "If you ask me, I think that as soon as Rupert saw Serena and Darien were friends and that there was something unknown in her blood, he had one of those 'ah ha!' moments."

"Because he might have figured that was what caused Darien's sparks. Something in his blood," Motoki interjected. "But, would he really be that interested in Darien after more than twelve _years_?"

His companions looked at him deadpanned. "Gold _sparks_," Zoisite enounced slowly. "Does that sound like the kind of thing you'd just let _go_? I'm not saying he dwelled on it every second of every day but it had to have been in the back of his mind stewing occasionally. It's like . . . like . . ."

"Like an unfinished puzzle. Or riddle. Even that crossword clue you just can't _get_," Jadeite said thoughtfully. "You don't always have to think about it but you're still kind of bothered by the fact it's unsolved and, when you hit a breakthrough, you're kind of itchy to see if you can finish it."

Zoisite nodded. "Serena was Rupert's possible breakthrough. You said it yourself that day, Cadeyrn. He made a notation in her file about how she showed similarities to another patient and that they were _friends_. You know his mental-wheels were turning."

"O . . . kay. Valid points," Motoki muttered, rolling his eyes as the generals smirked. "So chances are that Dr. Rupert went over all of Serena's test results with a fine-toothed comb. Maybe even dragged up Darien's file just in case if he'd thought he'd missed something." He leaned forward to grab Serena's file off the table and held it up pointedly. "But all her tests were negative, inconclusive, etcetera. They just knew there was something wrong with her blood. Not what, or how, just was. After a week, she was released at her parents' insistence when no solid answers appeared."

"But Rupert told them that she might have a poison killing her inside before she left," Jadeite reminded. "Sounds to me like he was trying to get everyone worried enough to stay at the hospital longer."

Motoki frowned as he opened Serena's folder and skimmed through it. "You're right. A notation by Ami's mother says that Rupert did not approve of the discharge. That there were still more testing they could try. But he was outnumbered by both she and Vigil, and her parents."

Zoisite frowned as he looked at Jadeite. "Find anything else in Darien's file?"

"No." He shifted through the paperwork absently. "I was kind of hoping for something juicy. You know, missing pages. More crossed out, or blacked out, notations about Endymion's powers. Honestly, after that one half-crossed out note, I expected Rupert to have hid things because he was ridiculed for thinking he saw golden sparks but it looks like that was _it_. After that note he never brought it up, at least in here." He shook his head and closed the file, preparing to toss it back onto the table, before his eyes zoomed in on a piece of paper sticking out slightly. It was folded in half, crinkled and worn a bit. "Well, well, well. What do we have here?" he muttered as he plucked it out and dropped the rest of the file onto the table. When he opened the paper, he felt his eyes narrowing suspiciously. It was covered in scribbles and crossed out words, phrases and— "He's fuckin' crazy," he uttered in surprise, holding the paper away from him.

"What?" Zoisite asked instantly. "What is it?"

Jadeite shook his head but his eyes remained fixed on the paper. "There's a diagram on here. With a mountain and all kinds of trajectories. Then there's a car and a"—he squinted—"person? Yeah. A person." He turned the paper so they could see what he was talking about. "See? All kinds of angles pointing out from them. But the thing that worries me is—"

"The big, bold, underlined, obviously-traced-hundreds-of-times 'IMPOSSIBLE'?" Motoki asked disbelievingly. His eyes traced over the mathematical equations along the mountain in shock. "And this was in _Darien's _file?"

"I think I found my something juicy," Jadeite muttered as his eyes zoned onto the ripped edge of the backside of the paper. He could just make out '—pert' on the sprawled, cutoff signature. It was definitely the same handwriting he had seen in Darien's file. Doctor Rupert.

Zoisite paled suddenly as a suspicion hit him. "Cadeyrn . . . Motoki, how did the car accident happen?"

The former-prince gained a wide-eyed, horror-filled stare as realization dawned on him. "A drunk driver on the wrong side of the road. Darien's father swerved and they went through a guardrail and down the side of the mountain. It took the rescuers three days to get down. His parents were dead, he was found ejected from the car. Unconscious, but alive."

"With only a few bumps, a broken wrist, and amnesia," Jadeite whispered. "That was Rupert's first sign that something was wrong with that picture. Darien should have _died_. Undoubtedly. The only thing that could have possibly saved him would have been his . . ."

"Power. His golden colored power." Zoisite groaned and dug his palms into his eyes. "This just keeps getting worse."

* * *

Serena swallowed as she gazed up at the golden-eyed man. It wasn't that she was afraid of him, per se, it was more of the fact he was . . . intimidating. His strange-colored eyes were fixed on her in a narrowed-eyed stare, not quite a glare but close enough to make her want to wince. The hands clenching her shoulders were as firm as gentle could get but, as she felt the power humming around him, she knew that if he wanted to he could probably snap her like a twig. She could even see a muscle twitching in his jaw, no doubt caused by how hard his teeth were clenched together. She knew he was angry—_really _angry—yet she couldn't find it in her to be afraid of him because he seemed so much like . . .

"Darien," she whispered, searching his eyes. Everything around them, from what had just happened to her parents horrified faces, was all but forgotten as she looked at him. She just knew she _had _to know if it was really him, in some form, behind those gold eyes. "Are you Darien's incarnation?"

The hands clenching her shoulders loosened automatically and a strange smile lit up his face. It was almost like he was _amused _by the question; definitely not mad anymore. '_Another point in favor of it being true,'_ she thought wryly_. 'I have a feeling Darien would have been amused by that too. Out of all the things to say. Not, "Ow! Why'd you have to shake me so hard!" or . . ._ _or, "RUN! I just blew about every secret I've been keeping from my parents!" or, "You idiot, how could you have let me_—_" '_

"You hold no fear of me."

She stopped her mental musings, staring at him with wide eyes. "N-no." She swallowed again. "You remind me of my friend Darien. You . . . you _feel _like him," she whispered. "And, if I hadn't of been so shocked from my first youma battle the day before, I probably would have been sort of intimidated by him too when we got into that argument. I guess I deserved it, though, for throwing that test at his forehead. Even though it was an _accident_. And he completely made a big deal out of it and _teased _me."

He quirked an eyebrow at her rambling, only for her to instantly stop and zone in on the action. It was such a familiar gesture that she couldn't help but laugh. "You _are _Darien, aren't you? That was so like him that it was almost creepy."

He nodded. "Correct. I am your Darien."

Involuntarily, she blushed at the way he phrased it. It was probably just the way they spoke in the Silver Millennium but _still_. "He—he isn't m-_my _Darien. He's . . . Darien."

He quirked his eyebrow again. "Indeed."

She giggled, what little intimidation she had of him vanishing completely. "I guess it explains why I feel so safe with you. I mean, you're basically him. You're not going to hurt me. Ever. I know it."

He nodded again, the action almost grim this time. "You speak true. No harm shall come to pass from me to you. I shall protect you as always."

She squinted. "You really do talk funny." She blinked. "Wait. Protect me? So that _is _what you're doing? We weren't positive, but it had seemed like you were. . . ."

"You were afraid of me." He said it evenly but to her it sounded like an accusation. Like _Darien's _accusation that she had been afraid of him that night they had fought in the hospital when she was discharged. She winced in memory. "When I appeared all the times before."

"W-well," she stuttered, "you were always upset before. And that . . . startled me. Because I thought something was happening to Darien. Something bad."

He closed his eyes, bowing his head, and she bit her lip to stifle another giggle. There was something so _cute _about him right now; like he was a big teddy bear you were just dying to hug. "I apologize. I am simply angered by what has transpired with your Guar—_Senshi_," he amended swiftly, remembering the new, foreign word, "lately. They are fools."

She frowned and, despite everything that had been happening recently, found herself coming to their defense. "No they're not. They're just doing what they think is right. They're worried. You can't really blame them because no one knows who I was. I could really have been a Dark Kingdom General's wi—"

"Stop that!"

It was only out of sheer surprise at being addressed in such a fierce demand after they'd been so calm that she took a step back but, to the forgotten occupants of the room, it was out of fear. All the Tsukino parents knew was that the duo had started talking to each other, Serena even laughing, and then Darien had suddenly yelled at her again and she'd stepped away . . .

"Serena!" Kenji exclaimed, his mind whirling with thoughts. Had he been wrong? Was Darien _not _Tuxedo Mask, but something worse? Something _dangerous_?

"Get away from her!" Ikuko ordered, terrified eyes fixed on her daughter. "You're scaring her!" She gasped, taking her own step back as Darien looked over his shoulder and fixed his gold eyes on her.

"Do not test my patience, madam," Endymion uttered darkly. "I had no compassion for her mother before. It shall not trouble my mind to lack any this time as well."

Ikuko took a rattling breath as her heart pounded frantically in her chest at her sudden revelation. It had been _him _that night. The man that had hid in Serena's ICU room at the hospital before jumping out of the window. It hadn't of been _Darien_, it'd been the man standing in her dining room now. The same man who was yelling at her daughter and scaring her. The man who unexplainably had unnatural eyes but, if he wasn't Darien—not completely—who _was _he? And, more importantly, what was he going to do?

Serena squeaked as the golden-eyed man suddenly looked back at her, all luster coming back into his eyes and making them shine down on her like little suns. "You will listen to me. Understood?"

"Yes," she squeaked again. Darien had never been this demanding before. Not unless you counted the times she'd seen his eyes flash gold—or _thought _she had. What was it about the golden-eyed man that made him so . . . so _intense_?

The hands gripping her shoulders loosened, yet his eyes remained on her steadily. "Those _Senshi_," he spat, "deserve no words of kindness. Not after the betrayals they have dealt you. Corruption runs rampant in those women so thick that they cannot see the strings on which they are being manipulated. You are _allowing _that to happen to yourself as well. You must gather yourself back together. These people here are not your enemy; they have done nothing to merit your hate, only your love." Her eyes widened. Was he actually _defending _her mother? "You cannot allow those women to destroy your true self because that is what she _wants_. That is how she will break down your defenses and then take what is yours."

She gasped. "You knew who I _was?_" she asked breathlessly, only for her eyes to widen even further as he nodded. "W-who? Who was I in the Silver Millennium? Please, I _need _to know."

Instantly his expression did a one-eighty and turned soft, gentle, and he reached out to run his forefinger down the length of her cheek. Her eyes widening comically and she held her breath, fearing that if she moved even a centimeter he wouldn't tell her. "You were—" Before he could finish, his eyes rolled into the back of his head and he was crumbling forward into her arms.

"Darien!" she screamed in horror as she caught him, his much larger body driving her down to her knees helplessly. She looked around hysterically only to catch sight of her mother holding a thick encyclopedia between her hands over the two of them, still frozen in a striking position. _"_M-_MOM!"_ she cried, her eyes flooding with tears as they snapped between victim and assailant. "You _killed _him. You killed Darien!" she wailed as she wrapped her arms around him. "How _could _you?"

The book slipped out of Ikuko's fingers numbly to land on the floor with a loud crack. "I . . . I . . .," she stuttered, her eyes wide and her face pale as she stared at the body of the man she had just, apparently, killed. "I . . . didn't . . . mean to," she whispered as she brought a shaking hand up to her lips. She looked at her husband, flinching at the wide-eyed shock on his face. "I didn't mean to," she repeated helplessly.

Serena stared at Darien, the blood draining from her face as quickly as tears filled her eyes while scenes of gold swords and bloody wounds invaded her mind.

_. . . a shadowed, feminine figure appeared leisurely behind the man amongst the surrounding chaos. He noticed the figure almost instantly, snarling out something that made him receive a small smirk in reply. The smirk only widened as the woman calmly reached out and grasped the bloody sword, pulling it out of its foreign host almost violently . . ._

_. . . She watched as his head snapped over to her, blue eyes filled with horror at her presence, before they dimmed slightly as that same golden sword was plunged through his right shoulder blade mercilessly . . ._

"Ser . . . Serena . . .," Ikuko said slowly, "I would never k-_kill _him. . . ."

The words shattered the nightmarish visions and Serena sent her mother a disbelieving look. "I would hope not! I hope you purposely didn't hit him _either _because he has a preexisting condition! He had total _amnesia _after his parents died! We don't know what a blow to the head will do to him! Especially with an _encyclopedia_, of all things! A shoe is one thing but . . . but . . . ." She bit her lip, tasting blood, as she remembered she'd made him hit his head on her floor _twice _this morning by pushing him down. "Oh, no . . .,"she whimpered. "No, no, no. . . ."

Kenji's head snapped over to the girl with a horrified gasp before he let his eyes wander around the room frantically for the cordless telephone. Before he knew it'd been Serena's dramatics that Darien was dead but now it was quickly escalating into a real emergency. They needed to call an ambulance—fast.

Ikuko slapped a hand over her mouth. "Sweetie, oh, sweetie, I didn't know . . . ."

"O-obviously." Serena swallowed thickly, pushing back her tears, and gathered herself together enough to try to turn Darien's unyielding body over so she could see his face. "But it doesn't change the facts!" she continued, panting lightly. He was _heavy_! "He could forget _everything _now! Including m-_me._" She choked as she caught sight of his pale face. She felt around his neck frantically, desperately trying to remember the crash course in medical attention Ami gave her when Sailor Mercury joined the Senshi, only to sigh in relief as she successfully felt his pulse. It seemed normal; neither too fast nor too slow. "Darien, gold-eye guy," she whispered as she tapped his left cheek as firmly as she dared, growing more anxious as the seconds ticked by with no response. "Either of you, I don't care who, just please wake up. Please, _please _be okay."

Behind them, Kenji lunged into the living room. With erratic, gasping breaths he hurriedly pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose as they began to slid down. "H-hold on! I think—upstairs!"

Ikuko, in the meantime, was carefully edging toward the duo on the floor. "Serena, believe me, I—I would _never _have but . . ." She faltered, frowning. "But he was _scaring _you. I had to do something . . ."

"He wasn't scaring me!" Serena sent her mother a quick, watery glare. "We were talking and he just got a little . . . intense." '_Yeah, definitely intense. And he __**really **__doesn't like the Senshi . . ._' She mentally grimaced, suddenly adding, "And he was _defending _you!"

"De . . . fending . . . me . . .?" Ikuko gaped.

Serena scowled. "Yeah. Nice irony there, right, Mom? He was defending you and you knocked him unconscious." She sighed and shook her head, ignoring her mother's stricken face with only a distant twinge of guilt as she turned back to the man in her embrace. "Wake _up_," she pleaded, only to bit her lip harder as he remained silent and still. Where were those darn healing sparks of his? Did they even _work _while he was unconscious? "I know you can do it. I've chugged t-too"—her breath hitch with the effort not to break down into tears again—"too many things at your head before for you to be really hurt _now_. Besides, you . . . you _like _books, right? You can't let one of them knock you down like this. It's embarrassing." She laughed watery, running a finger down his cheek in a mirror of what the golden-eyed man had done to her. "You don't want me to tease you about a tiny, weenie book knocking you unconscious, do you?"

"Serena," Ikuko began softly, only to stop. She wasn't sure if it was worth trying to explain herself. No, she hadn't reacted in the smartest way, and she certainly hadn't meant to actually _hurt _Darien but, would it even matter to Serena? She'd crossed the line with the two of them, and awhile ago too. Her eyes fell to Darien, studying him. She wasn't sure what to think. He'd just gone . . . gone _gold-eyed _on them, for goodness sakes! And he'd snapped at her, but Serena had said he'd been defending her and—"_Sparks_," she squeaked suddenly, wide-eyed as a golden spray of sparks began leaping off Darien's head where it was being cushioned on her daughter's legs. "S-Serena!" she said frantically as horrible possibilities flashed through her mind. Gold _sparks_! She _knew _it had to do something with his gold eyes! "G-get away from him!"

Serena ignored her mother as she watched the sparks flow over her knees like a mini-waterfall before they disappeared once they made contact with the carpet. She gasped abruptly, leaning toward Darien as a groan issued from somewhere deep in his chest. "Dar . . . ien?" She held her breath hopefully as his eyelashes began fluttering open, only to swallow thickly as they fell back shut without ever fully opening. Was that a glint of _blue _she had seen—or were his eyes still gold? What would the gold-eye guy even _do _if he was the one that woke up? '_If __**anyone **__woke up'_, her mind supplied miserably.

"Serena!" In the background, Ikuko's cry went unheard yet again. "I said get away from him!"

"If . . . if you just open your eyes," Serena whispered to Darien desperately, "I promise you can call me Odango all you want. Or . . . or whatever else you want to, even." She bowed her head, letting her red-rimmed eyes hide behind her blonde bangs even as they remained fixed on the sparks she could see leaping up from the back of his head. "_Please _wake up and remember me. I can't do this without you. You have to open your eyes and tell me your okay. _Please_."

* * *

Motoki yawned as he watched Zoisite and Jadeite pace around the room, blinking bleary eyes. Didn't they know how _boring _that was? The monotony of going to the window and back to the coffee table, to the window and back to the coffee table . . . Zoisite's quick, yet quiet footsteps versus Jadeite's angry, almost violent stomps . . .

"Okay!"

He started at Jadeite's sudden shout only half as much as the way he reacted to the man's slap against the top of the recliner—that one caused him to jump a foot off the couch, at least. A surly glance told him that Zoisite didn't even flinch as he also turned to Jadeite. Was there anything that cracked him? He didn't even seem all that too worried Ami was _dying_—she was last on the list, despite being in the most danger! How heartless was _that_? '_Or is that the secret of the success of Endymion's generals?_' he wondered suddenly. '_That not even personal affairs matter when it concerns their King and his Queen? But, are they really so utterly devoted to their master . . .?_' Seconds later, another yawn brushed away his thoughts and he felt his eyelids began to slid down heavily. Two hours of sleep just wasn't enough for anyone in the world, especially not to think those kinds of thoughts . . .

"Okay _what_, Jed?" Zoisite stressed when the man said nothing else.

Jadeite looked up, blinking as if he'd forgotten he wasn't alone. He shook his head quickly. "Okay! So Darien has golden healing powers and so what that they almost automatically manifest whenever . . .he's . . . injured . . ." He stopped, his lips twisting oddly. "That didn't even start reassuring, did it?"

"No," Zoisite said dryly. "Especially considering he'd been at a hospital _injured_." He sighed. "Let's face it. Rupert had to have seen the power more than once. And it was on his mind readily, either before or after Serena was admitted."

"Which is just _bad_." Both men cast dark, matching glares to Motoki for his oh-_so_-helpful comment but they went unseen under the Solarian's closed eyelids.

After a moment of staring at Cadeyrn grumpily, Jadeite shook his head and turned to his best friend. "What are we going to do about this, then?"

Zoisite frowned. The look on Jadeite's face told him exactly _what _he thought they should do. "Forget it. We're not calling him."

"Why not?" Jadeite demanded, only to receive an exasperated look in response. "You're _still _angry?"

"And why _shouldn't _I be?" Zoisite snapped. "He's a lying, conniving . . ."

Jadeite sighed. He'd just opened Pandora's box, hadn't he? "Zoi."

". . . _deceitful _excuse of a man who hid the fact he knew where Endymion's reincarnation was for five _years_. Never mind that he all but confirmed that he knew Darien and his parents _before _their accident. He didn't even tell us a single thing when he thought Darien was dead! You have another thing coming if you think he's going to be able to _help _us. It's his fault all of this is happening!"

"Only in a roundabout kind of way . . ."

"We're not going to ring Commander!" Zoisite declared as he crossed his arms. "That it. End of story."

"'_End of story'?"_ Jadeite sputtered disbelievingly. "You're _not _my boss—I don't _need _you to agree with me! You're barely my equal, as a matter of fact!"

"Yeah, because I'm better than you!"

"_Better?_"

Motoki groaned, peeking one green eye open. Couldn't they just let him sleep in _peace_? Seconds later, as he absorbed the complaint, the other eye popped open. "_What?_ You mean Commander _knew _where Darien was? Even before I told him about Tuxedo Mask?" He scowled as they both nodded. "Why am I always _missing _something?" he groused disbelievingly.

"Because we didn't feel the need to tell you. Not when it's between Commander and Endymion's generals," Zoisite answered, even as his eyes remained fixed on Jadeite. "We're _not _calling him, Jed."

The man snorted. "Now who isn't being rational?"

"What are you talking about? _I _was the one who suggested we need to be rational about this!"

"You know just as well as I do that he needs to be caught up on everything!" Jadeite's voice became louder with each word until he was talking over Zoisite. "He needs to be here. If nothing else, to make sure another one of his lies isn't going to come crashing down on all of our heads! You can't disagree with that logic; I know a part of you is thinking the exact same thing! You said you understood him, why can't you _forgive _him already? I have!"

"Because he—" Zoisite clamped his jaw shut, staring at Jadeite darkly. "If you were smart," he said after a moment, "you would know why I can't."

Jadeite narrowed his eyes, blue pupils becoming cold. "Then call me a moron. You do enough as it is."

The forgotten-Motoki flicked his eyes between the generals as they stared at one another. For so-called "best friends" they sure fought _a lot_.

Zoisite was the one that looked away first, moving to an armchair opposite the couch. "Well?" he snapped once he was seated. "Are you ringing him or not?" He took a moment, glancing at the digital watch on his wrist, before leaning back calmly—with a new sparkle in his eyes that Motoki didn't understand.

"Don't expect me to say a single word to him," Zoisite added as an afterthought. "If you're so desperate to talk to him, then do it on your own."

Jadeite opened his mouth only to stop, shaking his head. "Forget it. You're not worth talking to when you're like this. Being a _bébé _(A/N: "baby" in French)," he mocked as he moved to the telephone and began dialing, pointedly putting the call on speaker. Zoi might not want to talk to Commander but he sure would have to _listen _to him.

Zoisite rolled his eyes, grumbling something in French himself.

"I heard that!" Jadeite snapped as he whirled around. "And I understood most of it, too! I am _not _a—"

"_Hello, Dr. Aidan Morris speaking. How may I help you?"_

In surprise, the pillow Jadeite had grabbed slipped out of his hands, falling back onto the couch innocently. "Dr. Aidan?" Forgetting his anger, he threw Zoisite a bewildered glance—the man shrugged. "What are you doing answering Commander's private line?" he asked into the phone carefully.

Halfway around the world, the doctor frowned as he glanced around the room he was in. Dark oak paneling on the walls, view overlooking the school's grounds, paintings and a kind of organized mess everywhere—huh, he was still in Commander's office. Funny how time blended together so fast; he could have sworn he was in his own office. Asleep would have been even nicer, though . . . _"May I ask who this is?" _There was a pause, then a grumble of, _"And why you're calling me at two in the morning?"_

Jadeite instantly grimaced. "Oh, sorry. Forgot about the time difference." He turned to Zoisite with a wince but the man was unsympathetic, his grinning eyes practically screaming 'I told you so!'.

Motoki shook his head, realizing the spark in Zoisite's eyes was because _he _had thought about the time difference. Devious, that man was.

"I—uh, could ring again later?" Jadeite offered hesitantly.

"_No, no. It's fine. Awake as it is. . . . Again, who is this?"_

"Jadeite." When Aidan made a noise of confusion, Jadeite frowned. "Jamison. Jamison Lynton?"

"_Um . . ."_

He sighed, pointedly ignoring the smirk he _knew _Zoisite was giving him. "I graduated a few years ago . . . my parents do a lecture every winter . . ." He stifled a groan and hung his head when Aidan still didn't make a sound. "Code Jade?"

"_. . .Oh. Oh, Jamison! How could I have forgotten our resident chemist? That poor science room."_ The man chuckled as he swept a hand through his shock of orange hair. _"Sorry. It's been a little hectic around here lately. Not enough sleep. I remember now. You were the one that broke Donovan's nose a few years back, too, right?"_

Jadeite's face instantly blossomed into an angry red and Zoisite began laughing in that same instant—deep and loud. "I suppose there _was _a good part about ringing home," he mused with a few more chuckles.

"You remembered D…. D… _him _but not me?" Jadeite shouted. "What's so memorable about _him_?"

Aidan winced, pulling the phone away from his ear for a moment. Maybe Jamison _should _have called back later. _"Well,_" he said into the phone slowly,_ "we talk occasionally. He's just over in Security_—_"_

"WHAT?"

"Donovan?" Motoki blinked, the image of only a vaguely familiar man with an odd minty-blue and white head of hair coming to mind. He was a few years older than himself, if he wasn't mistaken . . . "You don't mean Donovan Gibson, do you?"

"Don't say his name!" Jadeite spun around, waving his arms in a borderline frantic way. "It's like a curse! It'll bring a plague down on us _all_!"

"Now who's being a _bébé_, Jed?" Zoisite smirked at the dark, menacing scowl his friend threw him. Payback hurt, didn't it? _Especially _when it involved Donovan Gibson and the two men's rivalry. And, if Donovan had a job in Security now. . . .

Aidan blinked abruptly and sat up a little straighter in Commander's chair. _"Motoki? Motoki Furuhata, is that you?"_

"You remember Motoki just by the sound of his _voice_?" Jadeite complained as he fell onto the couch beside Cadeyrn. "And that . . . that _thing _has a job in _my _department? Zoi was right; this _does _keep getting worse!"

"_Well, why shouldn't I remember Motoki? He_—_**ooh**__, I shouldn't . . . ."_

Motoki smiled at the fumbled response. At least there was another person who remembered him. "It's okay, Dr. Aidan. I remember who I am now. Prince Cadeyrn of Sol."

"_Then of course I remember him. I was Solarian, he was part of the royal family . . . if you don't mind me asking, Your Highness,"_ the doctor began after a silent moment, unknowingly making Motoki grin. He hadn't been called 'Your Highness' seriously in this lifetime—it felt good. _"but when are you planning to visit? Just the other day, your mother was telling me all about how she misses her little baby boy."_

Motoki's grin fell as Jadeite and Zoisite instantly snorted in laughter. "Thanks a lot, doc," he said, sighing.

Jadeite had to chuckle at the blush on Cadeyrn's face. "_Aw_. Isn't that cute?"

Zoisite rolled his eyes at Jadeite's teasing, though a grin tugged at his lips as he stood and walked over to the phone base. "Dr. Aidan, it's Zoisite. Do you remember me?"

"_Yes, of course. You're_—_"_

"You remember," Zoisite said quickly, shifting uncomfortably.

Beside him, Jadeite's grin faded knowingly. Maybe he _was _a moron; he had a suspicion he knew why Zoi couldn't forgive Commander now. . . .

"May I ask why you're answering Commander's private line?" Zoisite paused, frowning suddenly. "Or did Jed dial the wrong number by accident . . .?"

"_Oh, no. He was right. I'm in Commander's office right now. He left me in charge."_

All the men perked up at the news. "You mean he isn't _there_?" Zoisite scowled as the doctor made a sound of affirmation. "Then where _is _he? This is an emergency."

"_**Another **__emergency?"_ Aidan grumbled._ "Why must everyone have an emergency when the man goes bloody missing?"_

"M-_missing?_" Motoki's sputtering yelp went unheard by the two generals. Jadeite glanced at Zoisite sharply, only to see the man had paled rapidly.

"Father's . . . missing?"

* * *

"_Vater_ . . ." The whisper was in German, seemingly blanketing the room. "What should I do?"

Laid out of her bed, arms under her head, and a frown on her face, Ami stared at the mural her father had painted for her. The laughing faces of her parents and herself, the water fountain, the perfect winter day—none of it ever changed up there on her ceiling.

But life did.

It'd been almost eight months since she had last been in Munich, back in that park her father had so painstakingly created for her here thousands of miles and a continent away. Eight months since she had left her home country to come to her mother's . . .

She'd been only three-years old the last time she'd lived in Japan; that hadn't nearly been enough time to develop much devotion to the country besides pride of her heritage. Her mother had, though; born and raised in Tokyo, Mizuno Saeko had only ever lived outside the country a few years before her daughter was born, returned to Japan and left again when her daughter was a toddler, before coming back this past year, relocating to the same ward she had always lived in while in Japan.

Mizuno Saeko was the kind of person that was content to live in one place, do the same thing everyday, for the rest of her life; Ami wasn't sure if she herself would be. She'd always thought it was a trait she'd inherited from her father—that hunger to go out and see the world—but, lately, she wasn't so sure.

She wasn't sure about much anymore, if she was perfectly honest with herself.

"_Nichts_," she whispered. Nothing.

She found herself doing that sometimes—talking in German to herself, that is. She was always afraid one day she'd forget what she considered her native language. Find it slipping away one word, one phrase at a time . . . then, when father managed to call, having to stutter hopelessly until she broke down and spoke to him in English instead, all with her mother's wide-eyes fixed on her in disbelief.

Her fear wasn't completely paranoid, though she knew it sounded it. Here, so far away in Japan, it wasn't was if she could get much practice. Perhaps she might run into a miserably lost German-speaking tourist but that was rare and the masses of Japanese people around her didn't speak a word of German. The internet helped, of course; browsing German sites and reading the local news in Munich was a favorite pastime of hers. She'd even programmed German into her Mini-Computer and Visor to keep it fresh in her mind when she was afraid the language was disappearing faster than she could blink. The problem was that most of all that was written words, which would never completely be on par with having a spoken conversation with someone in rapid-fire German like she craved from time to time.

Her mother was the most likely candidate to speak German with—having learned the language while in the country for so long—but it seemed like she hardly ever saw the woman anymore. Between her mother's duties at the hospital and her duties to the Senshi, they were left with an occasional night together and most of their messages left on sheets of paper or the whiteboard beside the door. If she could hardly have an adequate conversation with her mother in Japanese, she doubted a German one would be any more likely.

Her father, then, became the next best choice. Furthermore, while they both spoke English, and he an upper-beginner level of Japanese, she spoke almost exclusively German with her father. The problem was, much like her mother, she rarely saw him too. At least she—roughly—had daily conversation with her mother. Conversations with her father were limited to his access to a phone and-or cell phone coverage . . . or a postcard . . . or, even rarer, a letter.

She really needed to get him to use that email address she had set up for him; it would do their relationship wonders when he was near a computer. As it was, the last time she'd spoken to her father was months ago—four, if she remembered correctly, which she sure she did—but she'd received a postcard from him on her birthday in September. That was just short of three months ago.

The postcard had been enhanced by his own painting—he often did that to commercial cards; she'd once asked him why he "defaced them", he insisted he "enhanced" and she had had to agree because he _was _a wonderful painter. It had been postmarked from somewhere in Central America, in a city she didn't recognize and had been too preoccupied to research, and had said he was sorry he couldn't call and wish her a verbal-Happy Birthday. There was not any phone reception in the bit of rainforest he was in, it went on to say, and he wished her a fantastic birthday and to say 'Hello,' to her mother.

And that was it.

That was the one fault she found time and time again in her father. While she knew he loved her, he always seemed too . . . _preoccupied_ to give her his undivided attention. He was always moving from one city to another, if not one country to the next, and he never seemed to stop thinking. Even _she _could shut down her brain and listen to music mindlessly every once in a while. Her father, on the other hand, she knew hardly let himself just _stop_ and rest, and would often stay up late into the night—mostly painting, but sometimes he'd silently stare at a blank canvas with that oddly painful, contemplating expression she'd grown so used to him having.

He scared her when he was like that.

It was like he was warring with himself; one side of him being afraid to _not _be in constant motion, as if he'd go insane if he didn't do _something_, while the other side just wanted . . . peace.

She had never understand what could possibly be the matter, why he acted the way he did, but these past few months had opened her mind to new ideas and possibilities. Things like "reincarnation" had reentered her life as a terrifying fact and, times when her thoughts wandered to her father, half-formed thoughts and inclinations whispered to her. And they almost always included that word.

_Was that what ailed Father . . . a reincarnation's life—it's presence—threatening to drive him mad?_

And that scared her more than anything else because she was beginning to relate to the possibility.

She was supposed to be a reincarnation. A reincarnated warrior, someone sworn to protect Princess Serenity, the heiress of the Moon Kingdom and Silver Alliance. . . .

Like she never had before, these past few months she had found herself beginning to battle like her father. Her sides of her constantly opposing each other; the side that wanted a normal life, was desperately clinging onto her dream of being a doctor and perhaps finding someone to share a life with . . . and the other side that insisted she honor the duty she had been told she had so long ago and continue to protect her Princess—no matter what it cost her.

For someone she considered fairly rational and fair, it seemed like she couldn't find a middle ground to stand on—a possibility of doing both, having a future where she could be a doctor and have a _life_ while protecting her princess. She'd begun arguments with herself, saying that she could—because, hadn't she been for months? It didn't matter that the princess was in person now, the only difference thus far had been more meetings—but time after again she couldn't see it a possibility. The past few months had been hard—miserably, terribly, hard—and to have a whole life like that . . .

But, surely she had to have had dreams in the Silver Millennium too. What had she done then?

'_I don't remember . . .'_

She frowned at the stray thought, studying the ceiling-mural. She could remember what her life had been like _then_, at least. It had been . . . _happy_; she'd been content with her life, living with her mother, traveling with her father across Europe occasionally, and studying to become a doctor. She'd known everything she'd ever needed to know about the future.

'_Now I feel like everything is slipping away, out of my control . . .'_

Her eyes suddenly narrowed on a spot underneath the bench in her mural. _W.H. Anderson_, it said in the corner.

Wilhelm Hans Anderson.

The decision to revert to her mother's maiden name once they arrived in Japan was supposed to make the transition back easier on her. Shy, quiet, certified genius-level IQ, half-foreign, _blue _hair . . . she'd agreed it would probably be best to go from Ami Anderson to Mizuno Ami when she and her mother relocated to give her _some _leniency.

Now she beginning to regret the decision.

She _was _Ami Anderson—better yet, Ami Mizuno-Anderson. Wilhelm Hans Anderson and Seako Mizuno were her parents; she was born on the tenth of September sixteen years ago in Minato Ward, Tokyo; she had grown up in Munich and for all her life her mother had been a doctor and her father an artist; she was fluent in German, English, and Japanese; and she wanted to be a doctor just like her mother since she was a child.

Those were the simple facts of her life but, now more than ever, in times like these, she needed to hold onto them. Eight months ago she had entered a world where monsters appeared in the dead of night, cats talked, and a princess of the moon existed . . .

The same princess who appeared out of nowhere and decreed her best friend —her first, _truest _best friend—was a traitor and threat to all of them. And her other best friend had, effectively, committed suicide for that same princess before she'd ever laid eyes on her again.

Ami was fairly certain she may begin to hate Princess Serenity if life continued this way.

The name itself—_Princess Serenity_—caused curious tugs on her heart, flashes of what might have once been devotion making her feel light and giddy and _happy _before they disappeared, like a balloon popping inside of her. Those balloons had been popping fairly quickly the last few days.

The sight of the woman, all silver and regal and stunning, caused scenes from fairytales and things like "happily ever after" to come to mind. But that mind of hers, so very German-oriented, instantly brought her to the Brothers Grimm and the _real _fairytales of cut-off toes and fairy godmothers, evil stepmothers and thorns that blinded princes.

It made her wonder just what the black speck—the moral lesson—of the Moon Princess's story was. She assumed the knowledge was somewhere inside of herself, where all the memories of the Silver Millennium hopefully laid in waiting, but she still couldn't remember and the princess didn't offer any information. However, something inside of her—she was sure it was the Silver Millennium Sailor Mercury part of her—insisted that this story couldn't have been written as something as simple as a jealous sorceress wanting to be immortal. There had to be more to it . . .

Otherwise they would have already had their "happily ever after", wouldn't they have?

And, by "happily ever after", she meant the ending Princess Serenity's mother had wanted to give them: a new life without powers or villains, but _happiness_.

So, surely there had to be something else to the story. Perhaps there was even a prince? There had been no mention of one sweeping Princess Serenity off her feet in the Silver Millennium yet . . . didn't fairytales almost always have princes? Fairy godmothers, she supposed, might be beneficial to them as well.

. . . Or a fairy-cat. That would do. Luna had bestowed the Senshi powers and devices like a fairy godmother.

She giggled then, startling herself, but that giggle quickly became a sob. She touched her cheek, following paths of water down to where they had slipped down her neck. How long had she been crying?

"_Nein_," she whispered thickly. _No_. This wasn't a fairytale she was reading, imagining herself inside only to be tucked in bed by her mother when it was all done and over with.

This was life—_her _life—and it was time for her to stop hiding in the sidelines and letting the princess control it.

And if Princess Serenity didn't like it?

'_Too damn bad_,' Makoto's voice whispered in her head.

Ami sat up swiftly, her eyes instantly going to her desk. Books upon books covered the wood surface, a constant reminder that each attempt to find mentions of the Senshi—and especially Serena—had failed. Stories, tales, poems by the dozens . . . the first read-through had hinted at neither Serena nor the Senshi and, with each further read, she had only found abstract mentions and half-formed suggestions that she, admittedly, knew she was likely _forcing_ to connect in sheer desperation. Desperation to prove Serena was innocent and not a Dark Kingdom General's wife . . .

Yet, the fact of the matter was that she couldn't find a single piece of evidence that said one way or another who Serena might have been and, with each minute that ticked by, it only made her more anxious. She was at a standstill and quickly running out of options. The Silver Millennium had happened thousands upon thousands of years ago; there could be no way to find something as definitive as mention of Senshi or the Silver Alliance _now _. . .

So that only left one other option: going to the source herself.

Princess Serenity.

* * *

"_**Please **__wake up and remember me. I can't do this without you. You have to open your eyes and tell me your okay. __**Please**__."_

It was a struggle to open his eyes but he couldn't understand why. It'd always been easy to open them before, hadn't they?

Huh. He couldn't seem to remember if it had been or not, now that he thought about it. It was as if this wispy fog was clouding his mind, choking off his ability to think properly. He did know one thing, though. It hadn't been like this before—the first time he woke up in that hospital, that is.

To tell you the truth, he hadn't even thought of it as "waking up". He just . . . acted. It had been dark, his body had supplied a means for there to be light for him to see. Simple as that. The question was why wasn't it that simple _now_? It was dark, so where was the light already?

"_**En— . . . mion . . . ."**_

He could imagine himself whirling around in the mist of his mind, his hand crossing to his side as if it had a reason to—as if it had been _trained _to do so. And he could imagine that he saw nothing, too. It was like the Princess's dreams all over again, unable to see anything until _she _deemed that he should. Except this time it felt like . . . him. A place that was familiar to him, not the strange wariness of the Princess's domain. He dared say it even felt like _home _here. Ironic, actually. To feel at home in a place where there was nothing.

Home should be—_his _home should be…

Classical music. The soft sound the hammer makes when it hits the right key on the piano; the quivering note on a violin as it climbs higher and higher . . .

Nature. The smell of sunshine surrounding him; the whispering secrets the trees confided in him one a breezy afternoon . . .

Laughter. Deep, booming joy. The sound of a soft chuckle. A child's peal of delight. Hearty merriment, a simple joke being told. Mischievous giggles surrounding him from all sides . . .

Warmth. A golden glow from deep inside of him. The flash of a mother's smile, a comforting embrace. A part on the back, the smell of aftershave engulfing him. A loud cheer and a clatter of mugs . . .

. . . A pair of crystalline blue eyes, flecks of silver slowly memorizing him . . .

"_Sere,"_ he whispered to himself with a smile. Yes. _That _was home.

He'd give anything to go back home . . .

"_**En—**_

"—rien?"

He was sure he was dreaming; maybe even still lost in that fog clouding everything. He blinked a few times but the image of those same crystalline blue eyes never faded. Neither did their tears; pools of concern and sadness just waiting to streak down and over unseen cheeks. His focus never wavered from the eyes so he was startled to find a thumb running under the right one abruptly. He was even more startled to find it was his own. "_Sere . . ._" He traced a tear as it slid down her cheek wondrously; he could almost imagine them being made of pure, liquid silver. "'ou o'ayz?" His brow furrowed at his slur. "Are. You. Okay?" he pronounced slowly, precisely.

The skin under his finger crinkled upwards as a bright smile broke out on her face. "Maybe. Just answer one thing first," she whispered, chuckling watery. "What's my name?"

It was hard to hear her words, to focus on them. It was almost as if he was underwater, looking up at the surface helplessly to see a pair of blue eyes focused on him. "S—" He stopped abruptly, blinking a few times. No. He didn't want to call her Sere again. He didn't think he was saying it right, anyways; was it _supposed _to rhyme with 'hair'? "O . . . dango," he offered after a hesitant moment, shaking his head. With each small shake, he could literally feel his thought pattern become more solid, clear. He watched as the pair of blue eyes slowly morphed into a face, then the face into a person, then that person into a room. Then he finally heard movement. A crash from somewhere over his head, a sigh of relief, a—

"Darien, you _remember_!" Serena squealed as she shot into his arms. It was an awkward feat, being he was still on her lap, but she didn't let that stop her. She squeezed him around the middle, burying her face into his chest and contenting herself with the steady beat of his heart beside her temple. He was okay, he was alive . . .

"Serena?" For one, brief moment she panicked as he tried to move away from her and tightened her grip frantically. "Sere—_oomph_." He winced, pulling his head back so he could see the top of hers. "What's wrong?" he said quietly as he brought a hand up to her back. The fog was almost gone now. He was aware of his surroundings in a vague kind of way—he knew he was at least with Serena in her house—though what, exactly, was happening right now still seemed to be eluding him. . . .

"N-nothing!" She sniffled as relieved tears broke the dam in her eyes and began pouring down her cheeks. "You're okay!" her muffled voice exclaimed gaspingly. "You . . . you're not dead! And . . . and . . . " She squeezed her eyes shut tightly and shook her head wildly. "You're not _dead!_"

"I will be without oxygen." It was an automatic response; after so many months of going head to head with her, his mouth knew what to say even while his brain was struggling to catch up. '. . . _Dead? What's she talking about?_' His eyes flickered around quickly but he only grew more confused at the sight of Mrs. Tsukino hovering behind her daughter, an utterly conflicting expression on her face. Mr. Tsukino wasn't in sight, though his mind supplied him with the memory of the crash upstairs. But, where was her brother? And shouldn't there be someone else with them?

"Oh! Sorry, sorry!" She backed away quickly, offering him a sheepish smile as she dashed a hand across her eyes and sniffled a few more times.

The actions only brought his attention to her tears again. His hand hovered near her face, as if to brush away them away, but something held him back. Something had happened when he was with her last time; something that had caused all this . . . "Odango," he said softly as his hand fell back down to his side uselessly, "are you sure you're okay?"

She nodded even as she laughed watery again. "Shouldn't I be asking you that? Death's one thing, but okay is another story."

He blinked. "Should . . . you . . . be?" He looked around again, allowing little fragments of memory to return. He could remember being in the Tsukino dining room with the intention of eating breakfast with them but—"Why am I lying on your lap?" he mumbled as he turned his attention back to Serena.

She lost her smile quickly. "You _don't _remember what happened? . . .You don't feel any _pain?_"

He began to shake his head and lift himself back up, only to hiss through his teeth as the motions rattled his head. His hand went up instinctively to the back of his skull as he stumbled out of her lap to land in front of her with a thud. She was instantly there, standing on the tops of her knees and hovering over him. "Now I do," he supplied dryly, grimacing as he touched a tender spot. Immediately a new—almost _eager_— stream of gold began flooding from his fingers onto the spot he was rubbing.

The hands she had been moving to that same spot froze in mid-action. "Wow," she breathed. "That's so amazing. . . ."

He looked up at her oddly. "What? Pain?"

She giggled and shook her head. "No." She smiled as her hands began moving again. "Your healing sp—_arks_." She gasped in surprise as she was suddenly grabbed by her upper arm and pulled up into a standing position. "Mom!" she complained in disbelief as the women proceeded to drag her a few feet away. "What are you _doing?_"

"Sparks, Serena!" Ikuko exclaimed as she pushed her daughter behind her. She turned to face befuddled man, bracing herself for any retaliation even as she continued to address Serena. "Don't you see the gold _sparks _bleeding out of his _head?_ And you were going to _touch _them, for goodness sakes!"

Darien grimaced and self-consciously covered the whole of the injury with the palm of his hand, trying to hide any of his healing powers. It'd help if he knew how bad the injury was; let alone what had happened in the first place to get it there and him unconscious . . .

What had happened? He come here with a mission. He'd come with—'_Rose._' His eyes light up in memory. Rose had showed him a picture of Serena's friend Makoto and told him that was her mother. He'd come here and told Serena, then they had fallen asleep on . . . her . . . bed. He winced. How could he have forgotten _that_? The nightmare, staying up late to keep an eye on her, annoying her into a kiss, Mrs. Tsukino finding them after they'd tried to kiss _again_, talking before breakfast, Rose asking Serena for help with her mother's birthday present, Mrs. Tsukino accusing him of blackmailing Serena with her other identity . . .

"They're not _bleeding _out of his head!" Serena protested as she tried to shrug her mother's grip off her arm. "And so what if they were? He's hurt and needs _help_!"

Darien's brow knitted together in pain as a headache began to throb behind his eyes. They were _still _yelling? He frowned abruptly. '_. . .Still? That's right. The argument. Serena defended me and Mrs. Tsukino kept wanting to know why I knew everything but she couldn't . . . Serena . . . oh, no._' If his head didn't already hurt, he would hit himself for forgetting.'_Serena told her about the Senshi wanting to kill her; she kept getting angrier and angrier. I tried to stop her before she said it, but I'd been too late . . . ._' He shook his head. What _else_? There had to be more. He'd told her to stop and she'd begun yelling, then . . . then . . . _what?_ Honestly, with the trouble he had remembering, you'd think the—

"Not when he has _gold sparks _on his head!" Ikuko exclaimed. "No matter _where _they're coming from! Have you already forgotten he just had gold _eyes _a few minutes ago, too?"

He paled as his thought was finished for him. You'd think the gold-eyed persona had come out . . . "Oh, no."

"Yeah!" Serena snapped. "Before you hit him in the head with an _encyclopedia _and almost _killed _him!" She nodded as she caught sight of Darien's slack jaw, though it wasn't for the reason she assumed. "Yeah. That's what I thought too. Unbelievable she'd actually _hit _you, right?"

Instantly, Ikuko protested. "I didn't mean to! It was an accident!"

Serena whirled around, disbelief clouding her expression. "An _accident_? You mean the book magically dropped from the sky while you were right there, holding your arms up like you were going to hit him with _air_?"

"No! I mean—"

"What is going _on _in here?" Mother and daughter gasped, their heads snapping over to see Kenji in the doorway with a scowl on his face. Darien's attention stayed on the Tsukino-women in sheer disbelief. "I'm gone upstairs for a few minutes to find the phone"—Kenji pointedly held up the white cordless-telephone in his hand, scowling deeper—"and you two are _arguing_? There's an unconscious man with a . . . head . . . injury . . ." He blinked as he turned to see Darien sitting up. "Well—" He stopped, scratching the top of his head. "Are . . . are you all right, Darien? Do you need an ambulance?"

Darien's mouth opened and closed, looking between Kenji and the women, before he turned to Serena. "What did he _do_?" he asked desperately. Hundreds of thoughts swirled in his mind; the golden-eyed persona had to have done nothing short of horrendous to make Ikuko react the way she had—_was_.

The elder Tsukino stared at him in bafflement, but Serena understood instantly. "Nothing," she insisted quickly. "You did absolutely nothing."

"_N-nothing?_" Ikuko sputtered. "In the _very _least, he scared you!"

Darien grimaced. "Scared—"

"No he didn't!" Serena snapped as she whirled on her mother. She jerked her arm out of the woman's slack grip, feeling her eyes sting with frustrated tears. "I already told you he was _defending _you! I bet he won't have if he knew you were going to knock him _unconscious_, though!"

Kenji's eyes darted back and forth frantically as he absently laid the phone down on the table. He wasn't even sure where to start refereeing. "Dear . . ."

"I didn't mean to!" Ikuko turned to Darien, genuine concern and regret softening her fierce expression. "I _swear _I would never have hit you like that before, with or without your preexisting amnesia, and I am _deeply _sorry but,"—she glanced at her daughter helplessly—"I had to do _something_."

"That doesn't include using an encyclopedia!" Serena insisted as she stalked over to Darien and knelt down next to him. "_Do _you need to go to the hospital?" she asked in concern. He looked at her blankly, making her frown. "You know, to make sure everything is okay in that head of yours?"

He watched her for another moment before shaking his head. He instantly stilled as pain began to pound behind his eyes again. "No. I'll be all right."

She eyed him before biting her lip and leaning forward slightly. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "For telling them about your amnesia. I just . . . she hit you and you fell on top of me and . . . and I was afraid you'd forget me and—" She swallowed thickly. "I don't want to face all this without you and . . . and . . ." She stopped, taking deep gulping breaths.

"I understand, Odango," he said softly. "And you should know by now that you can't get rid of me so easily. If shoes don't do it, I doubt a book would," he added, trying to make her smile. She didn't. "I'm okay. Promise." He held up the hand that had been nursing the back of his head. "See? No blood or anything."

She frowned again, her eyes fixed on his head. "But . . ." Her hands began moving toward the gold sparks she could still see leaping off him occasionally. "Wh—_y._" This time as she was ripped away, she wasn't nearly as surprised. She was still as angry, however. "Mom, stop _doing _that! I'm not a _doll_, you know!"

Kenji watched his wife drag their daughter toward him, dumbfounded beyond belief. "Ikuko, what in the world are you _doing_?"

Ikuko planted Serena behind her again, brown eyes fiercely narrowed at anything and everyone. "I am protecting my daughter!"

"From _what_?" father and daughter yelped at the same time.

"From . . . from _him_!" She gesturing wildly to Darien, who only frowned as his eyes remained fixed on Serena's struggling form. "Our daughter does _not _need to be associated with some . . . some _stranger _with a psychotic split personality—"

Serena's mouth dropped open and she stopped struggling. "Split personality? _Psychotic?_"

"Ikuko!" Kenji exclaimed in shock. What had happened to his sweet, loving, _accepting _wife?

"—and gold _things _leaping off of him everywhere doing who knows what! Do you hear me, Darien?" Ikuko cried. "You and whoever that gold-eyed thing is, stay _away _from Serena! She isn't your _anything _to order around, or intimidate, or anything else! And she never _will _be! Forget about any friendship or . . . or whatever else you think you have with her! It's over!"

"Says who!" Blonde hair snapped around as Serena tried to wiggle out of the hold she was in again. "And he isn't ordering me around, or intimidating me! Right Dar—" She turned to him, only to stop as she watched him pick himself up. Something didn't seem . . . _right_. "What's . . . wrong?" She gasped as he got up to his feet only to stumble. "Darien!" she cried, only for her mother to hold her back.

Kenji himself took an instinctive step toward the younger man, only to freeze in indecisiveness as he saw a flash of gold leap off into the air.

"No." Darien stopped, grasping his head and shaking it a little. Serena quickly focused in on the fact he didn't looked _up_, though. "I am fine."

"Darien." She paused, holding her breath. "Let me see your eyes." Her eyes narrowed as he shook his head again. "Let me see them _now_. I know something isn't right."

"Do not concern yourself over it."

She growled and did the only thing she could think of to get him to look at her. She reached down and yanked her shoe off, throwing it at him with all her might.

He swore something unintelligible as she made contact with his cheekbone. Just as she expected, when he looked up his eyes were blazing gold, inciting a sharp intake of air from Kenji and a strangled cry from Ikuko.

"Must you do that?" the golden-eyed man grumbled, rubbing his head.

Serena scowled. "If you don't like it, then listen to me next time!"

He narrowed his eyes back at her. "You were not nearly as volatile in the last lifetime."

"And I have a feeling you were more bossy!"

" 'twas my right." He laughed before suddenly crying out, bending forward instinctively as one of his hands clutched his forehead. Within seconds, he was falling back down to his knees with a sharp gasp of pain.

"Darien!" Her struggling began again frantically. "Mom, let me _go_! He's in pain, he's not going to _hurt _me!"

"I don't care, Serena! You aren't allowed to go anywhere near him; he's not _normal_!"

The blonde froze, feeling herself pale as she slowly turned to her mother. "_Normal?_ He's not _normal _enough for you to accept him—_help _him?"

"_Nothing_—" They all turned to the raspy word to see Darien crouched on the ground, shaking his head lightly. "I haven't . . . heard before." When he looked up, his eyes were blue but Ikuko still tightened her hold on her daughter.

Serena swallowed thickly in the meantime, her eyes wide. His health seemed to have done a complete turn-around in the blink of an eye and, more than if he was still unconscious, that scared her . " . . . Darien? . . ."

"I'm fine," he insisted quickly, though his actions were careful as he climbed back to his feet. "Just a headache." He paused, his eyes sliding over the scene the Tsukinos made. Serena was standing slightly behind her mother, her braid all askew now and looking far too pale for his liking. Ikuko, on the other hand, was a little too red and—if it was any other situation—he'd be advising her to sit down and take a few calming breaths. Kenji, by far, looked the most normal; though, his glasses were just about to fall off the edge of his nose and the way his brow was crinkled told him he had just as bad of a headache as he himself had. "And come to the realization that I've far, far exceeded my welcome," he added belatedly.

Without another word, he turned to leave.

* * *

Zoisite's mood soured again quickly.

Jadeite wasn't exactly sure whether it was caused by the fact Zoi had said out loud that Commander was his "father," or whether it was because the man wasn't _technically_ missing. It was probably both; Zoisite wasn't one to _admit _Commander was his father and it went without saying that a shock like him missing when he might not be wasn't pleasant . . . and, besides that, Zoi had been acting oddly for days. Ever since they had found out Commander had known about Darien for years, to be precise. Well, "odd" was in the eye of the beholder so, Jadeite supposed, you could even say Zoi had been acting oddly ever since Commander had called them in London and told them Endymion was in Tokyo—

"Commander's your _father_!" Motoki balked for the tenth time since the admission. Sure, he may not have really _known _Zoisite or any of the other generals this time around until a few weeks ago but that didn't mean he hadn't heard stories and seen things. Nothing told him the two men were related; they sure didn't _act _like it, for Sol's sake! Zoisite didn't even called Commander anything but, well, "Commander"!

Zoisite waved a careless hand in the Solarian's direction. "Technicalities. Legalities. Don't really care for either of them where it concerns him. Now be quiet."

Jadeite knew he wouldn't, though, because he saw a sudden understanding dawn on Cadeyrn's face. "Wait, that means—"

"I _said _be _quiet_," Zoisite snapped with a swift glare. "And that is an order, understood?"

Motoki closed his mouth, swallowing as another revelation came to him. You didn't become one of King Endymion's top warriors and advisors for nothing. He'd known that very well when the generals had arrived—had even been apprehensive of them—but it seemed he'd forgotten that in these few short weeks. Probably when memories of Prince Cadeyrn and Solarian heritage and honor got to him. "Okay," he agreed quietly and just a little surly. He really should go back to sleep; no one yelled at him then. . . .

Zoisite nodded in satisfaction and turned back to the phone base. "Dr. Aidan, you still there?"

There was a pause, then, _"I can't decide if I should say 'unfortunately' or not."_

Jadeite laughed. "Might as well say it. I'm thinking it." He grinned as Zoisite shot him an exasperated look. "What? It's true."

Zoisite shook his head as he looked to the phone again. "Let me get this straight, doctor. You don't _actually _know if Commander's _really _missing or not?"

"_. . . No," _the man admitted. _"I guess not, _technically. _But, it's been a day. You know how he is."_

"He _always _checks up on everyone," Zoisite murmured. "To make sure nothing's wrong. You can almost time him down to five minutes from when he's scheduled to arrive at his destination." His eyes sharpened as his mind began working overtime. "All right, start at the beginning. You said he went to America? Why? A prospective student?"

"_Jupiter. I don't know if you've heard but she . . ."_

"Died," Jadeite answered just as quietly. "We all know. We're in Japan, remember?" His eyes widened suddenly. "Please tell me he's not going there to—"

At his side, Zoisite groaned. "He has to be."

"_He flew over there to tell her parents about her death," _Aidan confirmed. _"I don't know how, exactly, he was planning on achieving that but that's what he was supposed to do. But, as I was saying, he never rung to tell me he arrived." _His eyes fell down to the desk. _"And, lo and behold, when I call his mobile I hear it ringing from the same room. He'd been using the airport phones, so I have no way to contact him until he contacts me."_

Zoisite frowned. "When _was _he supposed to have landed?"

Aidan flipped his wrist and looked at his watch. _"Saturday, but his flight got delayed by a few hours in London so I suppose early this morning New York-time is more accurate."_

"What did he do beforehand?" Jadeite asked automatically. "And why didn't he leave from Glasgow?"

"_At Friday's breakfast, he abruptly announced he was leaving the country and didn't know when he'd be back. Told everyone I was in charge, be good and all that. That afternoon, he left after he explained to me he had something to take care of in London too and he'd just fly out to JFK International from there."_

"Wait, wait," Zoisite said quickly. "He left Headquarters _Friday_? Why?"

"_He didn't say and I didn't think to ask. All I knew was that he was headed for New York and he mentioned he might have to head to Tokyo not long after. I figured he was just getting business out of the way."_

"May _. . . _be," Jadeite drawled, glancing at his fellow general. "Do you think he might have been taking care of something for Darien?" he asked in a low voice, making sure Motoki couldn't overhear.

"Or one last effort at hiding his embezzling," Zoisite hissed back furiously before looking down at the phone. "Basically haven't seen him all weekend, doctor?" A positive. "When, exactly, was the last time you _heard _from him, then?"

Aidan squinted, thinking. _"He called me about one in the afternoon Saturday, telling me he was going to board the plane, then called back thirty minutes later to tell me the flight had been delayed until that night. Called about ten that night, saying he was on the plane, and that was that. He said he was supposed to land about five in the morning New York-time and would ring me then. The plan was sleep, go see Jupiter's parents when he woke up, and then ring me again afterwards."_

"But he never did." Jadeite's brow furrowed. "That's . . . strange. Really not like him."

Orders or not, Motoki's couldn't help but ask, "You _sure _he got onto the plane? Maybe it got delayed again?"

"_No. I called Heathrow and they confirmed all their flights to JFK departed that morning. The problem is that two of them ended up being forced to stop because of a sudden storm. One in Newfoundland, the other in Greenland. I assume he's on one of them, yet . . ."_

"You're not positive," Zoisite finished. He rubbed his forehead, feeling a headache coming on quickly. "But, in all actuality, he could be perfectly fine."

Jadeite frowned as he glanced at his fellow general. "We should still be cautious about this, Zoi. Making a single man disappear is easy. Thousands of miles away is completely irrelevant."

"I know—the hotel," Zoisite said suddenly. His eyes riveted to the phone base. "Do you know where Commander was staying in New York, Dr. Aidan?"

"_I called. He never checked in."_

Zoisite stopped, rolling his eyes skyward as he took a deep breath. "I hate Commander right now. And part of me _really _doesn't care that he might be missing."

Jadeite frowned as he studied his friend. He didn't believe that for a minute. "Maybe not Commander," he finally said, "but what about Artemis? You care he's missing? Arthur, even?"

Zoisite looked at him blankly. "Commander is my superior officer and the headmaster. Lord Artemis was my teacher. I don't have to care about them. For goodness sakes, I've been cursing at him from the moment he told me he'd lied to us about everything for—at _least_—five years."

"But Arthur is your father now," Jadeite retorted mildly. "Technically."

"Don't _remind _me," Zoisite growled as he patted his pockets, looking for a pen. He quickly pulled one out as he grabbed the small notepad beside the phone base. Then he sighed. "All right, Dr. Aidan. What's the hotel's address? And the phone number?" He nodded along, scribbling the information as Aidan relied it. "No flight number, you said?" he asked as he wrote: _22:00 GMT—departure; 5 EST—arrival _beneath everything.

"_No. Sorry."_

Zoisite's frown deepened. "What about the terminal at JFK? You know it?"

"_No." _Aidan sighed. _"I didn't ask a lot of questions because I didn't expect him to disappear. Or for him to forget his mobile here, for that matter."_

"Understandable," Jadeite said before frowning. "Hey, do you have either my or Zoi's mobile numbers' somewhere, doc?"

"_Actually"_—Aidan cast a quick glance around the desk—_"there's a nice note here that reads 'Zoi and Jed:_ _Tokyo hotel phone number and connections'. That will work, I'm assuming?"_

"Oh, well, to be on the safe side . . . ." He quickly rambled off their mobile phone numbers, nodding to himself, before saying, "Just call one of us as if there's any news about Commander's whereabouts. We'll do the same, right Zoi?" he added as he glanced over at the man.

Zoisite frowned. "Yeah, I'll see what I can do in the meantime. If he does call you first, though, doctor, could you tell him he needs to call _us _as soon as possible? Better yet, tell him to get to Japan immediately. There isn't time to waste or hide anymore. Not when a certain evil woman is currently here and seems to have been for a while."

Aidan swallowed thickly, his eyes wide. There could only be one 'certain' evil woman. "_Y-you mean_—_"_

Motoki blinked in surprise before abruptly sitting up straighter. "_What _did Áine confirm?"

Jadeite squinted at Cadeyrn. "How could we not have . . .?" He shook his head. "Doesn't matter. Just another thing to add to the 'Oh, Shit!' list. Yesterday Áine told us her _wonderful _boss has been in Tokyo at least since she herself has been here. Fantastic news when Endymion and Serenity are running around so unawares, right?" he asked sarcastically. "The Dark Kingdom was bad enough by itself."

Motoki's face proceeded to pale seconds before his mouth dropped open yet again.

"_C_-_Crown Princess Serenity . . . .," _Aidan stuttered, _"and_ _danger. Big danger."_

"Your surveillance work of everyone, Cadeyrn," Zoisite said as he rubbed his eyes tiredly, "apparently missed something. I would work on that." His lips lifted up into a half smile. "And I think I see why Aidan never became a soldier."

"_There's bound to be too much blood," _the man retorted quickly.

Jadeite couldn't help but laugh. "Says the _doctor_."

Aidan rolled his eyes. _"Blood in a controlled environment is completely different than the randomized violence of battle, thank you very much." _He shook his head. _"Any ideas what I should do? I don't want to worry, but now that I know __**that **__. . ."_

"Don't worry," Zoisite insisted. "He's okay. He's lived long enough to take care of himself."

"_Fine. I'll call if I get word from him. By_—_" _Aidan stopped abruptly, remembering something. _"Oh, wait! Do any of you happen to have King Thor of Jupiter's mobile number or anything? The number I found here in Commander's office was out of service."_

Jadeite swallowed. He'd only met King Thor twice; once on the Moon by chance and the other time when he was a child at HQ. He hated to admit it, but the man didn't just intimated him—he _terrified _him. "Why?"

"_He left a message not too long ago. I . . . think he might have found out about Jupiter's death."_

Jadeite and Zoisite shared a glance, wincing. Heads just might start rolling. "Glad I'm not you right now," the former couldn't help say with chuckle.

"_Well, I'm glad I'm not you either."_

Zoisite laughed as well but it quickly turned into a grimace as he remembered just _what _was happening here. "Thanks," he grumbled before rooting around for his mobile phone in his pocket. He glanced between Jadeite and Cadeyrn. "Well, either of you know his number?"

Motoki paled and rapidly shook his head in the negative while Jadeite frown thoughtfully. "No," he supplied after a moment. "And I doubt Nephrite would have it, either. He never even met Thor in this life. That was just you, me, and Kunz when we were younger."

Zoisite nodded absently, his attention focused on his mobile. After some quick thumb work, though, he frowned and said, "No. Sorry, doctor. None of us have it."

Aidan sighed, running a hand through his hair. _"All right. Thanks for looking. I guess I'll just have to wait until he calls back. No one here seems to have an updated number, either. Except maybe Commander but with his currents whereabouts . . ."_

"I'll see what I can do," Zoisite repeated. His eyes flickered down to his mobile before over to his laptop by the eating table. "He's most likely okay."

"_I suppose that's all we can ask for." _Aidan sighed again. _"Thank you. And be careful, all of you. She's a formidable enemy."_

"You don't know how much," Jadeite whispered as the doctor disconnected the call. He frowned up at his friend. "Zoi . . ."

The man glanced up before shaking his head and walking toward his laptop. "He's okay. And she will be okay, too," he added after a moment, running a tired hand through his temporary-brown hair. "She has to be."

Neither Motoki or Jadeite didn't need to ask which 'she' he was referring to specifically. Albreda—_Ami_.

Motoki frowned, his mind turning over his previous thoughts. '_He __**does **__care. Then, the secret isn't feeling anything, it's burying it . . . for the sake of their master. They __**are **__that utterly devoted to Endymion. . . ._'

* * *

It took a few moments for Darien's words, and his actions, to register in Serena's muddled mind but when they did, she instantly jerked herself out of her mother's numb grip for the umpteenth time and raced after him. "No! Wait! Don't _leave_!"

She broke into the living room just in time to watch him grab what looked to be a diaper bag off the couch and pull it's strap over his shoulder. For a brief, wild moment all she could do was stare at the girly pink and flower-covered bag lying against his leather jacket, barely hiding her father's hideous green and brown sweater—on top of Darien's utterly serious expression—and vainly try not to give into hysterical laughter. She knew it'd just lead to more tears; it hadn't of even been twenty minutes since she had been laughing over Darien's complaints of both the sweater and the ancient, ankle-baring trousers he wore and _now_ . . .

"I have to." Darien shot a quick glance to the dining room doorway to see Ikuko and Kenji standing side-by-side, the latter holding out an arm to block his wife's trek. "It's better if I do."

"Then I'll go with you!" Serena exclaimed quickly. "Just let me get my coat and—"

In the background, Ikuko took a step forward only to be stopped by her husband again. "Let them be for a few minutes," he whispered, making her frown. "You owe them that."

"Serena." The girl turned back to Darien, her smile fading. He, in turn, sighed. "We both know you shouldn't. After everything that's been said, it's best if you stay here and work this out with your parents. And I need to go, so you can."

Her lips parted, though she wasn't sure why she was so surprised—or hurt. The rational part of her readily agreed with him _yet_ . . . well, she wasn't the most rational person in the world, was she? Rational people didn't believe stories of ten-thousand-year-old guardians protecting a Princess from the moon—especially if those stories were told by a _cat_. . . .

"Odango, I . . ." Darien's tongue felt thick suddenly, making him swallow a few times. "I've already caused too many problems between you and your mother this morning. I don't want to be the reason you fight with her. She's the only one you have and I refuse to destroy that relationship in any way. I know . . . I know what it's like to not have one," he whispered. "And it hurts. It hurts a lot."

"But . . . you don't _need _to go," she insisted.

"Yes. I do." He sighed, glancing at Ikuko. "This—remember what you said when you were with my parents by the ocean?" he asked suddenly. "What we _both _said?"

Serena frowned. "About what?"

"We were joking about the gold-eyes being a split personality," he reminded. "We shouldn't have treated it so lightly because that _is _what he is. He's an independent persona that I have absolutely no control over. He proved that all too well this morning. We don't know what he's going to do or what he's _done_. I've said it before, he could have been appearing for who knows how long without us knowing it . . ."

"But he isn't dangerous!" She stalked up to him, staring him in the eye. "_I _talked to him, just before he—_you_—were knocked unconscious, okay? I asked him if you were Darien's incarnation and you know what he said?" He shook his head wordlessly. "He said, I and I quote, 'Correct. I am your Darien.' He isn't a split personality, he's your _incarnation_!"

Forgotten for the time being, Ikuko and Kenji gaped. "In . . . carnation?"

"Incarnation or not, he still acts separately from me," Darien retorted. "That makes him a liability."

"_No_. Because even before I could ask him, he told me 'I shall protect you as always.' That doesn't sound like a danger to me! Always, Darien, _always_. That includes you too!" she said desperately. "You can't just _stop _protecting me!"

A corner of his lip turned up in a semblance of a smile. "I never said I was. I insisted I would not too long ago, remember? But,"—his smile faded—"you know my specialty lies in watching from the sidelines. It'll be best it I keep my distance again, at least until everything is normal again."

"_N-normal?_" The question was high, almost hysterical again. "What is normal to _either _of us!"

"Ask me that when your odango are back. That's when I know everything is okay again."

She gaped at him and, if he could, he would gap at himself too. Was his 'normal' really defined by Odango's _odango_—of all things? He shook his head quickly, blaming it on head trauma only half-jokingly, and turned to her parents as she sputtered. "I apologize for all the trouble I've caused. _We_," he corrected shortly, making a vague gesture to his eyes.

Ikuko flinched but Kenji took a bold step forward. "It's all right, Darien. We . . . we haven't been exactly the best of hosts this morning either. I apologize for everything too."

Darien nodded once, sharply. "Thank you, again, for taking care of Rose for me last night. There won't be a repeat of last night, I swear." He glanced through the window and he could see the younger Tsukino and the toddler on the sidewalk. "Would you like me to send Shingo in?"

The Tsukino parents shared a glance. "Um—"

"So that's _it_?" They all turned to Serena to see the angry disbelief on her face. "You're going to suddenly start avoiding me because my mom doesn't think we should spent time together? Because you don't trust _yourself_?"

"I never said I was going to _avoid _you," Darien was quick to correct. There was a twinge in his heart; partly caused by her broken expression, mostly at what he was about to say. "Yet—" He stopped, running an agitated hand through his hair. He really didn't want to say it, either, but it would be safest for her . . . "Yet it'd probably be best if we stopped . . . spending as much time together as we do. Your mother's right. I've been a little . . ."—he grimaced—"_domineering _lately. I just hadn't realized it."

She scowled. "So. Your bossy, I throw shoes at you, and my _mother _knocked you unconscious. That makes us even."

He shook his head. "No it doesn't. Not even close. I've been paranoid about everything—"

"Which is _understandable_," she interrupted. "I've been having a lot of . . . problems . . . with enemies—_and _allies—lately." She mentally winced. That was the understatement of the year.

"It isn't understandable when _you're _the one suffering through all of this," he insisted harshly. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Ikuko tense, prompting him to sigh. He squeezed his eyes shut and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I haven't had any right to tell you what to do, or who to see."

"Do you really think _you _could tell me what to do, _or _who I can and can't see?" she snapped angrily. "You give me _advice _that I listen to because you're the only one that's even remotely trying to help me right now! If I thought your words didn't make a _shred _of sense, I wouldn't listen to them!"

He dropped his hand to watch her. "Look at your parents, Serena." She stubbornly fixed her eyes on him, making him sigh again. "They're not just trying to help you," he said. "They're _desperate _to. Your mother was right about something else. You don't have just me, have them too. Which is why I'm leaving." He took a step toward her only to stop and shake his head. "Talk with your parents," he said softly. "Please."

He was out the door before she could even think of a retort to yell at him.

* * *

It turned out Shingo didn't want to brave coming back into the Tsukino house. Instead he stayed outside, staring at the house warily. Serena was hardly aware of her brother's absence, however, as she stood staring at the door Darien had disappeared through.

She didn't know how long it had been when someone cleared their throat behind her and then her mom cautiously said, "Serena—"

She didn't give her mother a chance to finish whatever she was going to say. "Did that sound like someone with a psychotic split personality, Mom? Someone not _normal?_" She looked over her shoulder but she was sure what she felt anymore. A wave of emotions crashed over her, reminding her of that time so long ago when she had first transformed into Sailor Moon. She would never forget that day and she had a feeling she would never forget this one, either. Neither was for the pleasant memories.

Ikuko took a step back, unsure of what to do. Then her eyes narrowed at her daughter's stubbornness, her inability to be reasonable right now. "Did you _not _hear what he said? Even _he _admitted that . . . that _thing _was a split personality! That it was dangerous!"

"Not again." Kenji groaned, burying his hands under his glasses, and Ikuko took the opportunity to slip past him to face their daughter.

"_He _thinks it's dangerous," Serena corrected quickly. "That doesn't mean it—_he_—_is_!"

"Well, _I _think so!" Ikuko snapped. "And I still think there's something wrong with _all _of this!" She took a deep breath, trying to control her anger. "You were crying last night, Serena," she said firmly. "I heard you—the _both _of you. I may not have been able to make out the words but I know enough to know something isn't right with the relationship you and Darien have!"

"Stop it!" Serena slammed her eyes shut, clenching her hands to stop them from clamping over her ears also. She felt her eyes burning from tears but knew it wasn't just from now; there was something in the far back of her mind, another time she had fought like this . . . "The only thing that isn't right is having to _defend _him like this and having to suffer watching him _die _over and o—_over_." She choked, squeezing her eyes as if to block the image of the bloody sword that kept reappearing in her mind.

"W-what?" Ikuko stopped in surprise, glancing at her husband. He, in turn, dropped his hands and walked over to the two of them.

"Serena?" he whispered. "What do you mean?"

"My nightmares." She opened her eyes to stare at her mom. "You remember. I told you about them. My nightmares about the sword and the white light. I lied when I said I didn't know what it was doing," she admitted quietly. She felt a tear slid down her cheek as she looked away, unable to met either of her parents' confused expressions anymore. "I know exactly what it was doing. It was killing Darien. Stabbing him over and _over _again." She took a sudden gasping breath as she wrapped her arms around herself. "_That's _why I cry at night too, all right? That's what I was crying about _last _night." She looked up at them suddenly, shaking her head. "But you know what? That was the first time I felt _relief _afterwards. Because Darien was there, right _there _in the flesh with me, and I knew he wasn't dead or dying somewhere."

"Serena," Kenji ventured slowly, "is—does this have to do with what you mentioned before? About . . . those gold-eyes being Darien's incarnation?"

Her eyes snapped up as she paled, talking an involuntary step back. "Oh, no. . . ." She winced, muttering, "Stupid, stupid, stupid," to herself.

"Is it true?" Kenji asked in that same soft tone. It was so gentle—_paternal_—that it made Serena want to cry even as it began to relax her. "Are they really his incarnation?"

She looked down at the ground, chewing on her bottom lip. ". . .Yes," she whispered. "That's what Darien and I were talking about last night, after my nightmare. The gold-eye persona confirmed it himself while we were talking." She wasn't sure why she added it but she felt herself whispering, "My nightmares are about how he died last time. In his last life. I'm sure of it."

Kenji took it all in stride, nodding calmly. "And those gold sparks of his?"

She winced. "I . . . I really shouldn't."

"And why not?" Ikuko's voice was hard, curt, and it made Serena want to cry too. Where was _her _mother? This woman couldn't possibly be Tsukino Ikuko. Tsukino Ikuko was warm, gentle, and maybe a little scary where it involved failed tests and abandoned chores but she was never like _this_.

"It's . . . not my secret to tell," Serena finally whispered. She felt a tear rolling down her cheek at her mother's blank stare. This _couldn't _be her mother; Luna _had _to have done something to her.

"Serena, look at me."

As her father turned her chin to look at him, she had to blink. The image of a man with a long mane of golden hair and soft eyes smiled at her briefly before he faded. '_Papa . . ._' She blinked back tears as a sudden wealth of sadness hit her.

"Serena," Kenji was saying, "_I _am on your side, all right? I always have been and I always _will _be. You're my little girl." He smiled sadly as he brushed away another tear as it slid down her cheek. "No one wants to see their little girl like this. I'm trying to understand so I can help you, all right? I'm not going to push you into telling me anything, though. I can understand that you have reasons why you've kept all this away from us for so long but I'm here to listen when you need me."

People really didn't give her father much credit. He was more than 'Crazy Tsukino Kenji', he was . . . _Dad_. "Thank you," she whispered. "That means a lot to me."

He nodded. "I'm sorry I didn't speak up sooner. I guess . . . the shock of it all, I suppose, kept me from saying anything earlier."

She sniffed a few times. "It's okay. I understand."

"Good." He suddenly looked apprehensive, his brow knitted together. "But, I need to ask you this, okay? Just to give me some peace of mind that you really are is safe. Is—Darien is the good guy, right? His incarnation, too?" He peered into her eyes carefully, with just a dash of desperation. "You're sure you—_we_—can trust him? Them?"

She smiled and Kenji had to marvel at how it light up her face like sunlight. Maybe even starlight. "He's the best. We can definitely trust him. Any time, any life."

"How do we _know _that?" Ikuko asked suddenly, her voice sounding too loud. She didn't look angry, just resigned, and Serena felt brief hope feel her that maybe her mother _was _still herself. Just . . . too overwhelmed by everything. "Everything I've seen tells me he's too unpredictable. He can't control this . . . this split personality . . . incarnation . . . whatever it is. Not now or—" She turned to her daughter suddenly. "He hid in your I.C.U. room, Serena. That night you were admitted to the hospital, he was hiding in your room before even _I _managed to get in there."

The girl blinked. "He was worried about me."

"But _hiding?_" Ikuko protested. "And then he jumped out the window! Five stories onto _cement_! He was completely _fine _the next day!"

"So?" Serena shook her head suddenly. "And he couldn't have been in my room. He was with our friend Motoki. In the parking lot."

"Well,"—Ikuko voice was beginning to rise, making Kenji frown—"he could have and he _was!_ Maybe before he was with Motoki, maybe after. I don't know but the fact of the matter is that I _saw _him in that room; I _talked _to him and he was acting just like that he was when that personality took him over today!" Her eyes widened as something occurred to her as well. "And he beat up Motoki that night, too! He _admitted _it. Right to my face that next morning when he came to visit you. He said he had reservations about bring you to the hospital and Motoki wouldn't listen to him. That he got off _easy_!"

Serena winced. She knew that would come back to haunt someone. "I know," she said surly, "and I gave him an earful about it already. He apologized."

"And that's supposed to make it _okay_?" It was the housewife's turn to become hysterical. "Motoki was beaten black and blue for trying to _save _you! Darien is too unpredictable, too dangerous!"

The retort popped out of Serena's mouth before she ever thought about it. It made her wonder if they were words from another argument, one long ago . . . . "He is no savage! He does what needs be to protect those he cares for! That is what decent individuals do!"

Kenji eyed his daughter curiously but Ikuko only grew angry. "Oh, so now I'm not a decent person because I've never beaten someone up?"

Serena's eyes snapped up to her mother. "No. Of course not." She shook her head "I'm trying to get you to understand that just because Darien got into a fight with Motoki doesn't make him a bad person or dangerous. Darien was the one that took care of me once I collapsed at the arcade; he was the one who took care of me _before _that. It was only when he left to get medical supplies that Motoki rushed me to the hospital. Darien panicked and got worried; that's all it was. He just took it out on Motoki the wrong way."

"If Darien was so _worried_," Ikuko insisted, "then he should have taken you to the hospital _himself _at the first sign something was wrong with you! Called _us_,at least!"

Serena's hands clenched at her sides as she snapped, "He couldn't!"

"And why is that!"

"The same reason you hate him! I'm not normal either!"

Ikuko looked stricken. "What? Sweetie, why would you say such a—"

"Jumping out a of _window_?" Serena interrupted. "I've jumped off rooftops, light poles, fire escapes, you name it. You watched it _happen _every time a battle was shown on the television or a picture in the paper! Every time Sailor Moon did something incredible, something _weird_, that was _me_." She bit her lip, shaking her head. "So, if you think Darien isn't normal, then _I'm _not normal to you either. Me, or any of the Senshi. Even if I don't have powers anymore, that doesn't mean I didn't have them _once_. That I wasn't able to do some of the same things Darien can do right now."

"But you're not a Senshi anymore," Ikuko insisted but her voice sounded thin, weak, as if she was finally understanding she won't win this argument.

"So that means you're going to ignore the past nine months?" Serena shook her head, taking a step back, as her mother remained silent. "Well I'm not. That would be denying who I am right _now_. Who the Senshi are. Who _Darien _is."

"And just who is Darien, then?" Ikuko found herself whispering.

"Right now," Serena began in a similarly quiet voice, "he's someone that needs help because you can't handle someone who's _different_. Someone like me." She turned to the door only to stop suddenly, looking over her shoulder. "But maybe you're right, Mom. Maybe he isn't normal. Maybe he's _extraordinary_."

Mature words or not, she still slammed the door shut behind her childishly. She cast a quick glance at Shingo where he was sitting on the lawn, his eyes wide, and promptly winced. "Sorry. It . . . it should be okay now."

Her brother continued to stare at her, utterly still and silent, and, after a moment, she bit her lip and quickly ran down the sidewalk—away from her parents, away from her brother, but, more importantly, away from their . . . _expressions_.

Darien had never looked at her like that before. Ever. Not even during their not-so-daily-anymore-spats.

She bit her lip harder as she felt the tears flooding into her eyes. When had her life gone so _wrong?_ When had she become a stranger to her own family?

* * *

Done: June 2, 2010 1 am.

1. I don't think I've ever clarified this but, my 'Sere' is pronounced _SAIR_. It's not _SIR _because, frankly, I just can't imagine something sounding like 'sir' a nickname for Serena—or Serenity, for that matter—without some inside joke. My '_SAIR_' Sere is a short form of another name too, as it so happens! A just-missing-one-letter Solarian/Welsh name that perhaps someone called Serenity once upon a time . . . :)

2. Donovan _(DON uh ven) _From an Irish surname which was derived from _Ó Donndubháin. _The given name Donndubhán is composed of the Gaelic element _donn _"brown" combined with _dubh _"dark". It could also mean "dark chieftain" I've seen. Gibson (gib-SON) "son of Gib". Gib short for "Gilbert," which means "famous hostage/noble" from Germanic _Gisil _"hostage, noble youth" and _berht _"bright, famous".

Well, what's to say? This Donovan has odd minty blue-white hair, works in HQ's security, and he and Jadeite hate each other. I'd be keeping my eye on him when he shows up in in person in the next story! ((Any guess to who he might be? Hehe))

So . . . very, _very _sorry about the late chapter. I'm trying, I swear, and I _do _hope you enjoyed it, though I know it doesn't make up for almost a year-long wait . . .

But, it's my birthday. You can't yell at me. This was my gift to everyone else. :D LOL.

Please R/R, always appreciated.

_Tiger Celeste._


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